Hunger and heat are deepening the despair and struggle for survival of Gaza families.

Palestinians Fadi and Abir Sob struggle every day for food and water, as their six children face starvation and hardship.

Abir Sob and his children drink water from plastic jerrycans after collecting it from the water track. [

After being forcibly displaced several times during Israel’s war in Gaza, the Shove family has taken refuge in a coastal camp west of Gaza City.

Fadi Shove, a 30-year-old street vendor, describes his tent as “unbearably hot in the summer.” His wife, Abir, 29, collects seawater because of the lack of clean water supplies.

The children take turns standing in a metal basin, bathing while their mother pours salt water over them. Nine-month-old Hala cries when the salt stings her eyes, while her siblings endure the discomfort without complaint.

Abir Sob is using a bottle to feed his baby.

Abir feeds Hala water from a baby bottle. On good days, she mixes a handful of lentils with water to feed her. “One day feels like a hundred days because of the summer heat, hunger and hardship,” he says.

Fadi sometimes travels with his children to a nearby soup kitchen. “But there is very little food there,” he says.

The kitchen runs about once a week, never filling up. Often, she waits all day, but returns home with nothing, “and the children fall asleep hungry without eating.”

A boy found a pot in the garbage - Abir now uses it for cooking. The family has been displaced so many times that they have very few belongings left. I have to remember, Abir said. What can I do, there are eight of us.

Abir sometimes goes to the Zikim crossing alone or with her son Yusuf to help with the truck. The crowd is mostly men – stronger and faster than her. “Sometimes I can get food, and many times I come back empty-handed,” she said.

When she fails, she prays to those who have arranged the food. “By the grace of God, you have escaped death, please give me something,” she pleads. Many respond in kind, giving her a small bag of baked flour for the children.

Humanitarian agencies say 22 women have died in the past year due to aid restrictions in the war. But the Food and Agriculture Organization warned earlier this week that Gaza is currently facing the worst famine in its history.

During the hottest part of the day, the six children stay inside or near the tent. Their parents encourage them to sleep in the heat, so they don’t waste energy and get hungry and thirsty.

When the temperature drops, the children go outside. Some days, Abir sends them to ask their neighbors for food. Other times, they find something to fuel their makeshift stoves among the rubble and garbage of Gaza.

Israel imposed a complete blockade of food and other supplies for two and a half months, starting in March.

After spending the day searching for the essentials of life – food, water and cooking fuel – the family sometimes manages to gather enough food for Abir, usually to make a thin lentil soup. Often, they have nothing and go to bed hungry.

Abir says that the search for food has left him increasingly weak, often making him dizzy. “I’m tired. I can’t take it anymore,” he said. “If the war continues, I’m thinking about taking my own life. I have no strength left.”

During the hottest times, the child stays in or around the tent. Their parents prefer to let their children sleep during the heat - this saves them time, energy, and prevents them from wandering, becoming hungry and thirsty.

Israel imposed a complete blockade of food and other supplies for two and a half months, starting in March.

Fadi and Abir Sob cook lentil soup in their tent at a camp for displaced Palestinians in Gaza City.

Malakov, 7, is evolving as a cooking force, setting up a temporary tent camp plant for displaced Palestinians, where Sovon members are taking permanent jobs.

👉Israel’s starvation of Gaza: Desperate families survive on scraps as aid fails to meet rising demand.

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