TRANSCRIPT
Children in Gaza are so malnourished they don't have the strength to cry, says the chief of the United Nation's agency for children.
UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell has told CBS News over 13,000 Palestinian children have been killed by Israel's assault on Gaza, which is now in its sixth month.
"We haven't seen that rate of death among children in almost any other conflict in the world, it's really shocking. Thousands more have been injured or we can't even determine where they are. They may be stuck under rubble. Thousands more have lost one or both parents. Some of these children, you've seen them on the news, they're just by themselves managing their younger siblings: it's a horrifying situation."
In northern Gaza, one in three children under the age of two is already suffering from acute malnutrition.
Ms Russell says the stunting it causes is already apparent, and it will affect them their entire lifetime - if they survive.
"I've been in wards of children who are suffering from severe anaemic malnutrition, the whole ward is absolutely quiet. Because the children, the babies, don't even have the energy to cry."
Ms Russell is concerned aid is being held up by Israeli bureaucracy, and says the amount being let into the blockaded enclave is "a drop in a bucket".
The Israeli government is under increasing pressure to do more to stop civilian deaths from starvation.
Earlier this month a group of UN experts accused Israel of "intentionally starving" the Palestinian population, as well as targeting humanitarian convoys and civilians seeking aid.
Israel rejected the accusation.
According to UNICEF, nine out of 10 people don't have enough food to survive, and 81 per cent of households don't have access to enough clean water.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says Europe must not accept a famine in Gaza.
She made the comments in Egypt, during talks with the country's president Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.
Both say Egypt and Europe reject Israel's plans to invade Rafah.
"We are all extremely concerned about the war in Gaza and the unfolding catastrophic humanitarian situation. Gaza is facing famine, and we cannot accept this. It is critical to achieve an agreement on a ceasefire rapidly now that frees the hostages and allows more humanitarian aid to reach Gaza. I commend you for your personal efforts Mr. President to broker such a ceasefire and we’re also very concerned about the risks (that) a full-scale offensive in Rafah would have on the vulnerable civilian population. This needs to be avoided at all costs."
About 1.5 million people are squeezed into the southern city of Rafah, fleeing Israel's offensive.
German chancellor Olaf Scholz is in Jerusalem.
He says the planned ground offensive in Rafah was a top priority for his talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog.
Mr Scholz says he has pressed the Israeli leaders for an urgent temporary ceasefire.
"We also discussed the question of how to prevent an unbelievable number of the 1.5 million people living together in Rafah, who have fled there from being endangered and having their lives threatened. That's what it's all about and I think that has been well understood. We had very open discussions among friends. That's appropriate, especially because Israel is absolutely certain that it can rely on Germany.”
But Mr Netanyahu is facing more explicit criticism from politicians in the United States, with the relationship between Israel and its strongest ally showing cracks.
US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the highest-ranked Jewish official in the country, recently called for an election in Israel, claiming Mr Netanyahu had lost his way.
The comments were then backed by US president Joe Biden, who said Mr Netanyahu was responsible for the high civilian death toll in Gaza.
Mr Netanyahu has hit back, implying the U-S is trying to undermine Israel's democracy.
“I think (Sen. Chuck) Schumer's statements are wholly inappropriate. I think we're not a banana republic. The people of Israel will choose when they'll have elections, who they elect, and it's not something that will be foisted upon us. You know, it's wrong to try to replace the elected leaders of a sister democracy and a staunch American ally at any time, but especially during a time of war.”
But many Israelis - like this man Yoram Gadot - don't agree.
He joined thousands of anti-government protesters at a rally in Tel Aviv on the weekend and held a sign saying "Chuck Schumer is absolutely right".
"So my message today, according to what Chuck Schumer said this week in the American parliament about how (Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu is thinking, that's a catastrophe and we must have election as soon as possible. Otherwise we are all going to be in a bad, bad situation."
Hamas took around 240 hostages, including children, during the October 7 attacks on Israel, with around 120 later freed during a temporary ceasefire in November.
The Israeli government says at least 34 of those who remained in Gaza have since died.
But families are still fighting to have the remaining hostages freed, and many protesters say the government is not making it a priority.
Another protester, Rimon Nisan, says the war makes the need for political change more urgent.
"We're here to protest this government that hasn't been acting for the majority of people in Israel for a while now, especially since the beginning of the war. Whether it's the hostages or whether it's creating more tension between Arabs and Jewish people, we think it's actively harming us during the war and beyond it. So that's why we're here."
Despite mounting pressure on multiple fronts, Mr Netanyahu is pressing on with his plans to invade Rafah, although he hasn't provided a timeline.
He says international and internal criticisms won't prevent Israel from claiming "total victory".
The Israeli Defence Force claims to have destroyed the longest terror tunnel in the northern Gaza Strip.
And it pushes on with plans to attack Rafah by land, which the military says will involve evacuating civilians to what it calls "humanitarian islands".
With more than 31,000 Palestinians already killed, famine and further bombardment mean that death toll only looks set to rise.
