Conflict in Gaza: Israeli Siege Leaves Young Residents Devoid of Life and Purpose

In October 2023, the crisis in Gaza began when Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared a "complete siege" on the Gaza Strip. By November 1, 2024, the extent of the destruction was clear, with an article titled "The North of Gaza Is an Open Graveyard" detailing the collapse of the health system and the loss of lives within it.

The siege resulted in the collapse of Gaza's fragile infrastructure, leading to the disappearance of electricity, clean water, and access to basic medicines. This, coupled with the blockade reinstated by Israel by early March 2025, descended into a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented proportions.

By April 2025, Gaza was in famine, with dozens of deaths from malnutrition and over 60,000 children suffering from acute malnutrition, as confirmed by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor. U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders denounced the siege as a war crime and a moral disgrace, listing facts such as over 52,000 Palestinians killed, over 15,000 children dead, and 65,000 children currently showing signs of malnutrition.

The war in Gaza is being described as the methodical destruction of a people, their homes, food, and future through starvation, disease, and genetic trauma. A recent peer-reviewed study published in The Lancet estimates up to 200,000 indirect deaths could occur in Gaza from the siege and war, due to starvation, untreated diseases, and long-term genetic and biological harm.

Dr. Shahab, a medical professional working in Gaza, wrote that some weapons do not explode, they incubate. He and his colleagues believe there is a pattern of congenital deformities in Gaza, including cleft palates, malformed limbs, neural tube defects, and organ damage. The root cause of these deformities is suspected to be environmental toxins, potentially depleted uranium or dioxins.

On May 3, 2025, it was reported that the current phase of Gaza's suffering includes genetic trauma, affecting the biology of the next generation. On the same day, Dr. Shahab reported the birth of a baby girl with anencephaly - a condition where the brain and skull are missing.

Human rights organizations and medical professionals on the ground are sounding the alarm, stating that what is happening in Gaza is not simply a war, but the destruction of a people. Sanders called for an immediate ceasefire, massive humanitarian aid, and the end of U.S. complicity in what he described as the "ethnic cleansing" of Gaza.

Evidence of the destruction in Gaza is overwhelming and, in many cases, documented in the open. Sanders criticized the United States' role in funding Israel's military aid, stating that Washington's political silence is driven by the influence of lobbying groups. There is no information in the available search results about which organizations collaborated with Dr. Shahab to uncover genetic changes in the Gaza Strip.

The study warns that the most profound consequence of war may not be visible in the rubble, but in the chromosomes of children not yet born. The tragedy in Gaza is etched into the genetic code of a people under siege, with war now entering the womb and shaping the lives of young Palestinians and those yet to be born.

Conflict in Gaza: Israeli Siege Leaves Young Residents Devoid of Life and Purpose