Israeli forces in Gaza hit by fever, severe diarrhoea amid reports of food poisoning

Israeli forces deployed in the Gaza Strip are suffering an outbreak of gastrointestinal diseases and food poisoning, Israeli media have reported.

There was "an unusual increase in the incidence of intestinal diseases among [Israeli] soldiers," Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Monday. 

Since Israel's offensive on Gaza began on 7 October, many restaurants and individuals donated food items to the Israeli forces, which were likely contaminated during preparation, transportation or storage, the report said.

Many soldiers suffered symptoms of food poisoning, which included severe diarrhoea and high temperatures.

"Diarrhoea has spread among the soldiers in the south, in assembly areas, and later also among the soldiers who went to fight inside Gaza," Tal Brosh, the director of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Assuta General Hospital in Ashdod, said.

"Infection with Shigella bacteria, which causes gastroenteritis, has been diagnosed, and this is a very serious disease that has also spread among the fighters in Gaza. Infection with Shigella bacteria occurs through direct contact between individuals or through food," Brosh added.

“If the infection spreads among 10 soldiers in an infantry company, and they develop a fever after their temperature reaches 40 degrees Celsius, and they start having diarrhoea every 20 minutes, then they are no longer fit to fight and they expose themselves to the risk of death,” he added.

Israel's war on the besieged and impoverished Gaza Strip has killed over 15,000 people, including at least 8,000 children.

At the start of the war, the McDonald's franchise in Israel announced it had donated thousands of free meals to the Israeli forces, sparking a major boycott campaign in the Arab world.

The US burger giant's franchises in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Turkey issued statements disassociating themselves from the Israeli franchise and in most cases pledging aid to Gaza.