DaysofPal– Gaza’s health system is approaching what officials describe as “total operational failure,” with close to half a million surgical procedures currently on hold due to critical shortages of medicines, medical equipment, and specialized surgical supplies.
Ismail Al-Thawabteh, head of the Government Media Office in the Gaza Strip, stated that the health sector has been pushed to the brink by continued restrictions on the entry of medical supplies, despite the ceasefire.
Al-Thawabteh said that Israeli occupation forces are allowing only limited quantities of basic or emergency medical items into Gaza, noting that these supplies are depleted almost immediately and do little to improve the overall medical situation.
He stated that the materials permitted to enter are lacking essential components, such as advanced surgical tools, orthopedic devices, precision instruments, and critical medications for patients with chronic and cancer conditions.
“This leaves hospitals providing only a fragmented and insufficient level of care that cannot adequately save lives,” he said.
According to Al-Thawabteh, restrictions on surgical and medical equipment continue even as Gaza’s health system struggles to cope with the aftermath of the war and a growing influx of patients and wounded.
He warned that the Strip remains gripped by a severe health and humanitarian crisis marked by persistent shortages of medicines and medical consumables, directly endangering patients and pushing what remains of the health infrastructure toward collapse.
“In recent weeks, several hospitals have been forced to completely or partially suspend surgical operations,” he said, citing the depletion of basic operating tools, anesthetics, intravenous fluids, and other essential supplies.
Al-Thawabteh stressed that the suspension of surgeries goes beyond simple delays, exposing patients to the risk of death or permanent disability.
“We are facing nearly 500,000 pending surgical procedures,” he said, adding that medical teams are unable to carry them out as the system nears collapse under what he described as arbitrary measures imposed by the occupation.
He said the situation is rapidly worsening and approaching full paralysis, echoing warnings issued by the Ministry of Health and hospital administrations still operating in Gaza.
The remaining hospitals, he added, are functioning far beyond their capacity, with exhausted staff, fuel shortages, and critically low medical supplies.
Al-Thawabteh noted that medical aid entering Gaza amounts to no more than 10 percent of what the health sector requires, failing to meet even minimum needs or reflect the scale of damage inflicted on the system.
“These shipments are consumed immediately upon arrival and do not lead to any lasting improvement,” he said.
He also criticized continued restrictions on medical equipment, particularly surgical and orthopedic supplies, which he said are blocked under unfounded security justifications.
Al-Thawabteh described the policy as a violation of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions.
Warning that Gaza’s humanitarian crisis is intensifying rather than easing, he called for urgent international and UN action to ensure the unconditional entry of medical supplies and equipment to prevent further loss of civilian life.
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