Newborns in Gaza struggle with malnutrition

Being just 10 months old, Mayar, born into war and famine, is one of more than 100,000 children now suffering from severe malnutrition across the Gaza Strip, with her mother powerless to protect her amid displacement and soaring costs.

As the world marks the World Refugee Day on Saturday, the situation facing this mother and daughter underscores a long-standing crisis that continues to grip the war-torn region.

At Al-Rantisi Hospital in Gaza City, which has resumed operations since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, dozens of malnutrition cases are now being admitted each week as many residents across the Strip struggle to get a single proper meal a day.

Mayar is one of those cases. She was diagnosed with severe malnutrition. Born into war, she spent her earliest months in a tent. Repeated displacement, spiraling prices and the loss of household income have turned securing her most basic nutritional needs into a daily ordeal for her family.

"My daughter's health is on the verge of collapse, all because of the war and the constant displacement. I know a mother whose daughter actually died of malnutrition," said Maram Nasrallah, Mayar's mother.

Stunted growth is only one of the threats that malnutrition poses to Gaza's newborns. A host of related illnesses is further endangering their fragile lives.

"The common problems we see among children in Gaza include weight loss and weakened immunity. Children brought here -- for example, a one-year-old who should weigh more than 12 kilograms -- weigh only 5.6 kilograms. Many also suffer from gastroenteritis and chronic diarrhea. Some children have developed limb swelling due to protein deficiency. Others, due to low immunity, have come down with pneumonia. The root cause of all this is malnutrition," said Ahed Al-Helou, a pediatrician at the hospital.

According to the latest UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, an estimated 101,000 children in Gaza are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition in 2026, with more than 31,000 in need of urgent therapeutic intervention. In addition, 37,000 pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers are also projected to suffer from acute malnutrition.

Newborns in Gaza struggle with malnutrition

Iran's Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said on Monday that the first round of high-level talks between the U.S. and Iran in Switzerland had significantly advanced efforts to release frozen Iranian assets, while the U.S. side suggested the funds could be channeled toward American farm exports.

Hemmati told the country's semi-official Tasnim News Agency that "significant progress" had been made on the asset releases, with the relevant documents signed during the negotiations.

Referring to the unfreezing of the central bank's overseas assets as one of the most complex items on the agenda, the central bank chief said the funds will be phased into use in the coming days, in accordance with conditions and procedures established by the bank.

Regarding the export of oil and petroleum products, Hemmati said the two parties have agreed that the Office of Foreign Assets Control under the U.S. Treasury Department will be responsible for sanctions waivers for Iranian oil and petrochemical shipments.

After the U.S. and Iran held high-level talks at Switzerland's Burgenstock resort, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told reporters on Monday that if the U.S. agreed to unfreeze Iranian assets, the funds could be used to purchase American soybeans, corn and wheat.

Iran reports significant progress on asset unfreezing as US eyes agricultural exports