SATISH SHARMA - not just Rotigraphy.: While Israel waxes poetic about the rights of women in Iran, Amnesty International finds that it has a deliberate strategy targeting women to make life in Gaza "unlivable" and reducing their status to "subhuman."

https://x.com/academic_la/status/2031520635877531707

While Israel waxes poetic about the rights of women in Iran, Amnesty International finds that it has a deliberate strategy targeting women to make life in Gaza "unlivable" and reducing their status to "subhuman." Here are the main elements of that policy according to Amnesty International: 1) the systematic destruction of maternity and neonatal wards, combined with aid restrictions, has denied women the conditions to "give life safely". This led to a a 300% increase in premature births, tripled maternal mortality rates, and a 50% rise in neonatal deaths 2) As a result, we see an "exponential increase" in complications, including pre-term births, low-birth-weight babies, and postpartum depression. 68%–69% of surveyed pregnant women suffered from complications, including anaemia, hypertensive disorders, and vaginal bleeding. 3) Overcrowded displacement sites and the collapse of sanitation systems have led to a surge in infectious diseases. Women and girls struggle to afford or access basic hygiene products like menstrual pads and soap. 4) As a result there is an acute menstrual hygiene crises for women and girls. Reports indicate that over 89% of WASH assets are damaged, driving a 36-fold increase in diarrhea. 5) The collapse of Gaza's healthcare system and severely restricted medical evacuations have created a "slow death" scenario for women with life-threatening illnesses. Cancer-related deaths have tripled since October 2023, with over 1,200 patients dying while awaiting clearance to leave for treatment. 6) Breast cancer early detection is impossible due to equipment destruction. 7) Malnutrition affects women disproportionately. 95% of pregnant and breastfeeding women in Gaza face severe food poverty. Women are often the last to eat in households with scarce resources, prioritizing children and men. This leads to maternal depletion syndrome, where the mother’s body is physically consumed to sustain a pregnancy or milk production. 8) Severe dehydration and caloric deficits mean women cannot produce breast milk, yet infant formula is often unavailable or impossible to prepare safely due to the lack of clean water. Taken together, this is evidence of genocide. Article II(d) of the 1948 Genocide Convention explicitly lists "imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group" as one of the five prohibited acts that can constitute genocide. That is what Israel is doing. Women in Gaza, and their vulnerable children, are paying the price.

11:00 AM · Mar 11, 2026