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Photos: The 5-month mark passes as the humanitarian crisis grows in Gaza

NPR | By NPR Staff
Published March 11, 2024 at 2:04 PM EDT
Palestinian children carry banners during a march demanding an end to the war and an end to the famine that citizens suffer from due to the war on Wednesday, March 6, in Rafah, Gaza.
Ahmad Hasaballah
/
Getty Images
Palestinian children carry banners during a march demanding an end to the war and an end to the famine that citizens suffer from due to the war on Wednesday, March 6, in Rafah, Gaza.

This past week, the five-month mark since the Oct. 7 attacks passed as hopes for a cease-fire deal diminished. Sweden and Canada announced they plan to resume funding the U.N. agency aiding Palestinians. President Biden announced on Thursday that the U.S. military would begin establishing a temporary port on the coast of Gaza that would allow ships to deliver food, water, medicine and temporary shelters to the territory.

Ramadan began Sunday night, the holiday consists of fasting, prayer, charity and feasts. This year, it takes on a different meaning, considering the humanitarian crisis currently taking place in Gaza.

Here's a look at what photojournalists documented on the ground saw last week:

Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

A Palestinian artisan makes traditional "fanous" lanterns as Muslim devotees prepare for the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Rafah on Wednesday, March 6.
Said Khatib / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
A Palestinian artisan makes traditional "fanous" lanterns as Muslim devotees prepare for the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Rafah on Wednesday, March 6.
An apartment building in Gaza seen Saturday, March 9.
/ Anas Baba for NPR
/
NPR
An apartment building in Gaza seen Saturday, March 9.
A nurse cares for babies at the premature ward of the Emirati Hospital in Rafah, in southern Gaza, on Friday, March 8. Sixteen premature babies have died of malnutrition-related causes over the past five weeks at the hospital.
Fatima Shbair / AP
/
AP
A nurse cares for babies at the premature ward of the Emirati Hospital in Rafah, in southern Gaza, on Friday, March 8. Sixteen premature babies have died of malnutrition-related causes over the past five weeks at the hospital.
People gather at Israel's Nitzana border crossing with Egypt in southern Israel on Tuesday, March 5, protesting against the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip until all of the hostages being held by Hamas have been released.
Leo Correa / AP
/
AP
People gather at Israel's Nitzana border crossing with Egypt in southern Israel on Tuesday, March 5, protesting against the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip until all of the hostages being held by Hamas have been released.
A Palestinian carries some of his belongings on Thursday, March 7, as he walks by buildings destroyed in Israeli bombing after returning briefly to Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, to check on what remains of his home.
/ AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
A Palestinian carries some of his belongings on Thursday, March 7, as he walks by buildings destroyed in Israeli bombing after returning briefly to Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, to check on what remains of his home.
People participate in the 13th annual International Jerusalem Marathon on Friday, March 8, in Jerusalem. Many participants this year wore shirts and ran with signs raising awareness for the hostages kidnapped on Oct. 7 by Hamas and still being held in Gaza.
Alexi J. Rosenfeld / Getty Images
/
Getty Images
People participate in the 13th annual International Jerusalem Marathon on Friday, March 8, in Jerusalem. Many participants this year wore shirts and ran with signs raising awareness for the hostages kidnapped on Oct. 7 by Hamas and still being held in Gaza.
The bodies of Palestinians killed during the war were buried in a mass grave and the Gaza Ministry of Health said 47 bodies were confiscated by Israeli forces and delivered through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing on Thursday, March 7, in Rafah.
Ahmad Hasaballah / Getty Images
/
Getty Images
The bodies of Palestinians killed during the war were buried in a mass grave and the Gaza Ministry of Health said 47 bodies were confiscated by Israeli forces and delivered through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing on Thursday, March 7, in Rafah.
Israeli soldiers are seen near the Gaza border in southern Israel on Monday, March 4.
Ohad Zwigenberg / AP
/
AP
Israeli soldiers are seen near the Gaza border in southern Israel on Monday, March 4.
Smoke rises from an air strike on Gaza as seen from Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on Thursday, March 7.
/ Maya Levin for NPR
/
Maya Levin for NPR
Smoke rises from an air strike on Gaza as seen from Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on Thursday, March 7.
Displaced Palestinians look out from a bus window in Rafah on Saturday, March 9.
Mohammed Salem / Reuters
/
Reuters
Displaced Palestinians look out from a bus window in Rafah on Saturday, March 9.
A woman holds up a sign for a hostage held captive by Hamas in Gaza as she stands next to Israeli soldiers at Israel's Nitzana border crossing with Egypt in southern Israel on Tuesday, March 5, where the group protests the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza until all of the hostages being held by Hamas militants have been released.
Leo Correa / AP
/
AP
A woman holds up a sign for a hostage held captive by Hamas in Gaza as she stands next to Israeli soldiers at Israel's Nitzana border crossing with Egypt in southern Israel on Tuesday, March 5, where the group protests the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza until all of the hostages being held by Hamas militants have been released.
A woman looks through the remnants of an apartment building in Gaza on Saturday, March 9.
/ Anas Baba for NPR
/
NPR
A woman looks through the remnants of an apartment building in Gaza on Saturday, March 9.
Humanitarian aid falls from planes over northern Gaza as seen from Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on March 7.
/ Maya Levin for NPR
/
Maya Levin for NPR
Humanitarian aid falls from planes over northern Gaza as seen from Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on March 7.
Activists from "Standing Together" set out in a convoy, including a large truck carrying donated dried goods and cans, with the goal of delivering aid directly to Gaza on Thursday, March 7.
/ Maya Levin for NPR
/
Maya Levin for NPR
Activists from "Standing Together" set out in a convoy, including a large truck carrying donated dried goods and cans, with the goal of delivering aid directly to Gaza on Thursday, March 7.
Israeli soldiers mourn during a funeral for Israeli Staff Sgt. David Sasson in Netanya, Israel, on Thursday, March 7.
Ariel Schalit / AP
/
AP
Israeli soldiers mourn during a funeral for Israeli Staff Sgt. David Sasson in Netanya, Israel, on Thursday, March 7.
Displaced Palestinians gather to receive food at a donation point in Rafah on Thursday, March 7.
Yasser Qudihe / Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
/
Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
Displaced Palestinians gather to receive food at a donation point in Rafah on Thursday, March 7.
An armed and masked member of the so-called "Popular Committees of Protection" patrols the streets of Rafah on Wednesday, March 6.
Said Khatib / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
An armed and masked member of the so-called "Popular Committees of Protection" patrols the streets of Rafah on Wednesday, March 6.
Activists from "Standing Together" set out in a convoy, including a large truck carrying donated dried goods and cans, with the goal of delivering aid directly to Gaza on Thursday, March 7.
/ Maya Levin for NPR
/
Maya Levin for NPR
Activists from "Standing Together" set out in a convoy, including a large truck carrying donated dried goods and cans, with the goal of delivering aid directly to Gaza on Thursday, March 7.
Israeli soldiers carry the casket Israeli Staff Sgt. David Sasson as mourners gather during his funeral in Netanya, Israel, on Thursday, March 7.
Ariel Schalit / AP
/
AP
Israeli soldiers carry the casket Israeli Staff Sgt. David Sasson as mourners gather during his funeral in Netanya, Israel, on Thursday, March 7.
An Israeli soldier sits on a hill on Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on Thursday, March 7.
/ Maya Levin for NPR
/
Maya Levin for NPR
An Israeli soldier sits on a hill on Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on Thursday, March 7.
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