DaysofPal – A senior official in Gaza’s Ministry of Health has warned of an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe as the Strip’s healthcare system teeters on the brink of total collapse. With the near-total depletion of medicines, medical supplies, and fuel, thousands of patients, including children, the chronically ill, and cancer patients, are now at imminent risk of death.
Zakaria Abu Qamar, acting director general of pharmacy, sounded the alarm in a press briefing, revealing that 47% of essential medicines are now entirely unavailable. The situation is even more dire when it comes to medical consumables, with a shortage rate of 65%, effectively rendering half of Gaza’s healthcare services non-operational.
“Oncology and hematology services are among the worst hit,” Abu Qamar said, “with 67% of cancer medications completely missing. This has left thousands of patients without life-saving treatment.”
He added that more than 51% of primary care medications for chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and kidney failure, are no longer available. Patients are being forced to rely on ineffective substitutes, increasing the risk of serious complications, including heart attacks and strokes. Medical teams are now seeing a sharp rise in both, he noted, along with a spike in hospital admissions.
Displacement has only made matters worse. The ongoing Israeli assault has forced patients to move repeatedly, cutting them off from consistent care and making it nearly impossible for doctors to monitor or assess their conditions.
The crisis is not limited to the medical field. Gaza’s hospitals are running out of fuel, which powers generators that are the only source of electricity for medical facilities under siege.
At Al-Shifa Medical Complex, Gaza’s largest hospital, Director Dr. Mohammed Abu Salmiya announced the suspension of general services and warned that a complete shutdown is expected within hours. Al-Helou Hospital, he added, has less than four hours of fuel left.
Dr. Khalil al-Dakran, spokesperson for Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, echoed the alarm, saying that nearly all hospitals in Gaza are on the verge of closure due to the Israeli blockade and fuel ban. “The lives of around one million people, including 600,000 children, are at immediate risk,” he said.
Al-Dakran stated that the Israeli policy of restricting fuel deliveries is threatening the survival of 300,000 patients with heart and kidney diseases and those requiring intensive care or urgent surgeries. “Without fuel, our generators stop, and that is a death sentence for patients in these vital departments,” he warned in an interview with Al Jazeera.
With entire hospitals shutting down or operating at bare minimum capacity, administrators are being forced to close outpatient clinics and non-emergency departments. Meanwhile, hundreds of wounded civilians continue to pour in daily, overwhelming the few facilities still functioning.
“This is not just a medical crisis,” said one health worker in central Gaza. “It is the systematic destruction of an entire health system, and the world is watching in silence.”
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