"No Clean Water or Diapers"... Palestinian Couple Gives Birth to Quadruplets Amid War

"Believed the war would end within 1-2 weeks"
"Unable to bathe the babies for ten days"

Amid ongoing battles between the Israeli military and the Palestinian armed group Hamas, a heartbreaking story has emerged about a Palestinian couple who gave birth to quadruplets during the war.

Recently, news agencies such as AP and AFP reported that Iman Almasri (28), living in the Deir al-Balah refugee camp in southern Gaza Strip, gave birth to quadruplets?two daughters and two sons?via cesarean section on the 18th of last month. When the war broke out on October 7 last year, Iman was six months pregnant and fled with her husband and five children from their home in the Beit Hanoun area in northern Gaza Strip.

Iman told AFP, "The distance we traveled while fleeing was very long," and "The journey had a negative impact on my pregnancy." Until she left for the evacuation, Iman believed the war would end within one to two weeks and that they could return home. However, as there was no sign of the war ending, she ultimately gave birth amid the conflict. Moreover, as the influx of wounded overwhelmed hospitals and beds became scarce, Iman had to be discharged with her newborns without proper postpartum care.

Twins born in Gaza Strip during the war.
[Photo by AFP Yonhap News]

Iman and her husband have left one of the quadruplets, who is in poor health, at the hospital and are continuing their displacement life in the Deir al-Balah refugee camp with the other three newborns, who are ten days old, along with their five other children. This large family is living in a shared space with about 50 other displaced people. Although the local tradition is to celebrate a newborn’s arrival by sprinkling water with rose petals, they are currently struggling to find even clean water to bathe the babies. Iman said, "We have not been able to bathe the babies for ten days," adding, "There is a severe shortage of clean water, milk, and diapers."

The newborns are enduring harsh sanitary conditions caused by smoke and dust from airstrikes, facing the risk of disease every day. Iman said the babies have been suffering from diarrhea for several days, and one of them is experiencing jaundice. Her husband, Amar Almasri (33), expressed his helplessness over being unable to provide for his starving and sick children. Amar told AFP, "I am worried about the children, but I don’t know how to protect them," and added, "We need milk and diapers, but we cannot get anything."

Meanwhile, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7 last year, the Jewish Sabbath, killing over 1,200 people including civilians, soldiers, and foreigners, and abducting around 240 people to Gaza Strip, triggering the war. Gaza health authorities reported that so far, 21,978 Palestinians have lost their lives due to Israeli military attacks, with the majority of the deceased being women and minors.

As of the 1st, the United Nations (UN) reported that 40% of Gaza’s total population (about 2.2 million) is at risk of hunger, and particularly, 335,000 children under the age of five face a high risk of severe malnutrition.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.