Palestinian youths in Deir al-Bala, in the central Gaza Strip, on August 27. (Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images)
A Palestinian boy carries humanitarian supplies along a desolate road in central Gaza. A Thai Paralympic athlete prepares for gold. A Sicilian goat faces extinction. Here's why these three photos matter right now.
Gaza evacuation order complicates humanitarian aid delivery
Photographer Eyad Baba captured the image of a Palestinian boy on Tuesday in the central Gaza Strip city of Deir al-Balah pulling several items, including cans and a large white bag similar to those used to distribute food in humanitarian aid deliveries.
Israel has issued several evacuations across the Gaza Strip in recent days, including one on Sunday in Deir al-Balah, where the United Nations was preparing to vaccinate some 640,000 children against polio.
The next day, the United Nations suspended aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip over security concerns. The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas fighters has forced up to 90 percent of the Gaza Strip's residents to flee, according to the UN Sustainable Development Group.
Sam Rhodes, senior deputy field director for the UN agency that helps Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), told reporters on Monday that the UN humanitarian system's ability to operate in the Gaza Strip was “increasingly challenged,” according to Reuters.
Rhodes added that the difficulties humanitarian trucks face entering the Gaza Strip mean that around one million Palestinians go without food every month.
2024 Paralympics opening
Thai swimmer Kaewsri Charkorn trains for the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris on Aug. 27. (Emilio Morenatti/The Associated Press)
The 2024 Paralympic Games opened in Paris on Wednesday. Photojournalist Emilio Morenatti photographed Thai swimmer Kaewsri Charkorn, 50, for The Associated Press. In this photo, Charkorn puts on goggles with his feet during a training session the day before the games began.
Charkone has competed in every Summer Paralympic Games since 2012, competing in the men's freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and individual medley races.
This year's Summer Olympics will be held in the French capital for the first time, with more than 4,000 athletes from around the world competing in 22 sports. The tournament runs until September 8th.
Sicily suffers from severe drought
Girgentana goats on an organic farm after drought in Caltanissetta, Sicily, Italy. (Luisa Vladi/Reuters)
Reuters photographer Luisa Vladi snapped this photo of Girgentana goats on an organic farm during a severe drought in Caltanissetta, Italy, on Sunday. The Sicilian goat breed is at risk of extinction after nearly a year of lack of rain caused water shortages on the island.
“There is zero grazing land,” local goat farmer Luca Cammarata told Reuters.
The city's residents have been without running water for two months, having to rely on rationing from water trucks in Sicilian towns. Droughts on the Mediterranean island, accustomed to long periods without rain, are now becoming longer and more frequent.
Italy declared a state of emergency in May to cope with water shortages before the autumn rainy season.
