Gaza’s health system on the brink of collapse

On January 3, 2025, during a meeting of the UN Security Council, Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization (WHO) representative for the West Bank and Gaza, warned that Gaza’s health system is on the verge of collapse. Dr. Rik Peeperkorn warned that “over and over again, hospitals have become battlefields, rendering them out of order and depriving those who need life-saving care. The health sector is being systematically dismantled and pushed to the breaking point, its resilience being tested amid dire shortages of medical supplies, equipment and skilled personnel. Only 16 of the 36 hospitals in Gaza remain partially functional, with a total bed capacity of just 1,822—well below what is needed to address the overwhelming health crisis.”

During the meeting, the UN High Commissioner for Human RightsVolker Türk, called the destruction of the hospitals a “destruction of human rights [that] continues to unfold in Gaza before the world’s eyes.” The UN High Commissioner noted that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) documented At least 136 strikes on at least 27 hospitals and 12 other medical facilities in Gaza. The devastation caused by the recent attacks on Kamal Adwan Hospital – the last functioning hospital in Northern Gaza “reflected the pattern of attacks documented in a recent report by his Office”. All of these attacks “caused significant death and injury among doctors, nurses, medical personnel and other civilians and destroyed many of the targeted buildings.” More than 1,050 health professionals have been killed in Gaza so far.

The UN High Commissioner referred to GEETHA Exhibitionpublished on December 31, 2024, which found that the increasingly limited health care system was preventing many of those who had sustained injuries from receiving timely and potentially life-saving treatment. The report covered the period between 7 October 2023 and 30 June 2024 and did not comment on the recent attacks on Kamal Adwan Hospital in late December 2024 or the closure of the Indonesian Hospital (due to lack of water, electricity and sanitation). The report stated that “Many wounded died while waiting to be treated or treated. Even those who managed to receive critical treatment, including surgery, received it without adequate bedding and facilities and were often discharged early due to lack of space.” In addition, the report commented that the attacks on hospitals in Gaza also had serious consequences for patients with initially non-fatal conditions, potentially fatal ones. He found that “women, especially pregnant women, suffer severely. Many women give birth with little or no antenatal and postnatal care, increasing the risk of preventable maternal and child mortality. (…) OHCHR has received reports that some newborns died because their mothers were unable to attend postnatal examinations or reach medical facilities to give birth.” Likewise, patients with chronic diseases that require repeated treatment, such as kidney failure, hypertension, diabetes and heart disease, as well as cancer patients have lost access to critical treatment.

During the UN Security Council meeting, the UN High Commissioner stressed that “the protection of hospitals during war is of the utmost importance and must be respected by all sides at all times” and called for independent, thorough and transparent investigations into all attacks on hospitals, healthcare. infrastructure and medical staff.

Responding to the reports, Brett Jonathan Miller, Israel’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, commented that with the recent operation conducted by the Israel Defense Forces, “More than 240 terrorists were arrested, including 15 involved in the October 7 massacre.” He also added that “among those arrested was the director of the hospital himself, who [was] suspected of being a Hamas agent, as hundreds of Hamas defectors and Islamists were hiding inside the Kamal Adwan Hospital under his management. He is currently being investigated by Israeli security forces.”

Attacks on hospitals in Gaza have pushed the health system to the brink of total collapse. This has devastating effects on Palestinian access to health and medical care. All attacks on healthcare must be urgently investigated. However, such research will not achieve much if Palestinians are left without medical care. Restoring access to health care must be a priority.