“"Formula is specifically being confiscated"”
Several medical workers, including an American doctor, have said Israeli border staff took baby formula from their luggage; Dr. Nick Maynard repeated such accounts secondhand. That is consistent, but anecdotal. No policy singling out formula has been documented, the claim that nothing else was taken is unverified, and Israel's COGAT said baby food was entering Gaza as aid organizations requested it.
What was claimed: "Formula is specifically being confiscated," a headline an Instagram reel by Naz put over Dr. Nick Maynard's Sky News interview.
What he said: "I met several doctors who had cartons of formula feed in their luggage, and they were all confiscated by the Israeli border guards. Nothing else got confiscated, just the formula feed."
What we found: Firsthand accounts support formula being taken from medical workers' luggage, for example an American doctor interviewed by Al Jazeera (July 14, 2025). We found no documented policy that singles out formula and no verification that nothing else was taken. Israel's COGAT said in June 2025 that "food for babies is certainly entering (the Gaza Strip), as the organizations are requesting it we are approving it" (AP). Formula shortages in Gaza at the time were real; their causes are discussed on our malnutrition page.
Why "needs context": Confiscations from personal luggage appear to have happened, but the headline implies a deliberate policy of targeting baby formula, which has not been shown. Full review: the reel and what he said.
Scale and intent — side by side
October 7 (Hamas): about 770–840 civilians killed in one day. Intent to kill civilians is documented — in Hamas's written orders ("kill as many people as possible"), its fighters' own footage, and its leaders' statements.
Gaza (Israel): civilian deaths in the tens of thousands over two years (the civilian share is disputed, roughly 60% to 83%). Israel's stated aim is to destroy Hamas; warnings and large aid volumes are documented, and several incidents have been acknowledged by the IDF as errors. Intent to kill civilians is alleged, and has not been established by any court.
Both facts matter, and neither cancels the other. Every party's alleged crimes, on one scale: War Crimes Ledger.
Sources & References
- › Naz (Instagram): "British surgeon Dr Nick Maynard, who has visited Gaza 15 times provides MORE evidence of Israel's war crimes," July 25, 2025
- › Sky News: "British surgeon claims IDF shooting Gazans in specific areas - 'almost like a game of target practice'," July 25, 2025 (archived)
- › Al Jazeera (video): "Israel stopped this doctor bringing baby formula into Gaza," July 14, 2025
- › AP: "Doctors and moms say these babies in Gaza may die without more formula," June 25, 2025 (COGAT statement)