925 - Starvation in Gaza
Public Health On Call
The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
4.8 • 620 Ratings
🗓️ 30 July 2025
⏱️ 19 minutes
🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS
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Summary
About this episode:
The World Health Organization is reporting thousands of cases of malnutrition and 74 civilian deaths resulting from mass starvation in Gaza in 2025. In this episode: Dr. Paul Spiegel discusses the origins of the crisis and recent developments and shares what this dire situation means for the future of the international humanitarian system.
Guest:
Dr. Paul Spiegel is a physician, epidemiologist and the director of the Center for Humanitarian Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr Spiegel has worked in humanitarian emergencies for the last 30 years.
Host:
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is vice dean for public health practice and community engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a faculty member in health policy, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland’s Health Department.
Show links and related content:
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No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say—New York Times
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Malnutrition rates reach alarming levels in Gaza, WHO warns—World Health Organization
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Humanitarian Health in Gaza and Beyond—Public Health On Call (June 2025)
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to Public Health On Call, a podcast from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, |
| 0:05.9 | where we bring evidence, experience, and perspective to make sense of today's leading health challenges. |
| 0:16.3 | If you have questions or ideas for us, please send an email to public health question at jhhhu.edu. |
| 0:23.8 | That's public health question at jhhu.edu for future podcast episodes. |
| 0:31.1 | It's Lindsay Smith Rogers. |
| 0:33.5 | Today, starvation in Gaza. |
| 0:36.7 | Dr. Paul Spiegel is the director of the Center for Humanitarian Health at the Johns Hopkins |
| 0:41.2 | Bloomberg School of Public Health. |
| 0:43.4 | He speaks to Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the dire situation in Gaza, challenges with the implementation |
| 0:49.8 | of a privatized system of food delivery, and recent changes to allow international organizations to bring in more food. |
| 0:58.2 | Let's listen. |
| 0:59.4 | Dr. Paul Spiegel, thank you so much for joining me today in public health on call. How are you doing? |
| 1:04.2 | I'm doing okay, Josh, given these circumstances, and thank you for having me. |
| 1:08.4 | We'll get to some of those circumstances. but talk to me about the big picture. |
| 1:13.0 | You've been at humanitarian health for a long time. |
| 1:16.1 | What is the landscape right now? |
| 1:17.4 | I've been working in this field for well over 30 years now, and I think none of us |
| 1:22.9 | have ever really seen a landscape like this, where it's not just that we are not able to respond |
| 1:28.8 | according to the numbers of emergencies, a number of people that need our support, |
| 1:32.9 | but the actual system itself is in crisis right now in terms of a dramatic lack of funding, |
| 1:39.4 | but also at the foundations of humanitarian health in terms of respecting humanity, |
| 1:44.7 | following international law and humanitarian principles are all at threat. |
... |
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