Gaza Strip 'Medical Collapse' Imminent... "All ICU Patients Will Die"

Water, Fuel, and Medicines Still Blocked Due to Israel's Blockade
UN Confirms Power Fuel Depletion Stage, '24 Hours Left'
Risk of Ventilators, Dialysis Machines, and Incubators Shutting Down

As essential supplies such as water, food, fuel, and medicine are nearly depleted in the Gaza Strip, medical services including hospitals have been pushed to the brink of "collapse," the United Nations assessed on the 20th (local time).

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) announced in a report on the same day that more than 60% of primary healthcare facilities in the Gaza Strip have closed, and hospitals are running out of electricity, medicines, various equipment, and personnel.

The biggest problem is the shortage of fuel for power generation. To prevent hospital operations from shutting down, the report introduced that the small remaining amount of fuel within the Gaza Strip is being transported to hospitals. Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest hospital in Gaza, received 10,600 liters of fuel from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in early October.

However, the hospital now reportedly has only enough fuel for about 24 hours, even as thousands of people have taken refuge there, according to M?decins Sans Fronti?res (MSF) in an interview with The New York Times. Accordingly, Al-Shifa Hospital is turning off some elevators, water heaters, and air conditioners to save fuel, prioritizing the operation of intensive care units, incubators, and dialysis machines.

In a statement, MSF warned, "We are already witnessing the collapse of patient care," adding, "Simply put, without electricity, many patients, especially those in intensive care units, neonatal units, and those on ventilators, will die."

The T?rkiye-Palestine Friendship Hospital, which is the only facility in Gaza providing chemotherapy to over 9,000 patients, is struggling to continue operations relying on a single generator that produces electricity.

The UN expressed concern that hospitals are struggling to cope with the influx of patients, many of whom are lying on the floor due to a shortage of beds, and that essential medical procedures such as dialysis, cesarean sections, and cancer treatments may soon be halted. UNRWA also reported that only 15 days’ worth of medicines and one week’s supply of insulin remain.

Moreover, according to WHO, medical facilities have been targeted by Israeli airstrikes, with 59 recorded attacks on healthcare facilities and 23 attacks on ambulances, worsening the situation further.

Meanwhile, Dr. Muhammad Abu Salmiya, director of Al-Shifa Hospital, told The New York Times that many of the patients flooding in from airstrikes are severely injured, and due to shortages of necessary medicines and supplies, doctors are forced to triage patients to decide who to treat. In the hospital’s emergency room, 60 injured patients from airstrikes are waiting due to a lack of beds, many in critical condition, while supplies are running low.

Earlier, Israel and Egypt conditionally agreed on the 18th to allow the first batch of relief supplies equivalent to 20 trucks to enter through the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza. However, the entry of essential relief supplies such as water, food, fuel, and medicine remains blocked due to disagreements between the two countries over the quantity and types of goods, causing delays.

In this regard, the Gaza Strip Ministry of Health stated, "We urge the international community to expedite the entry of medical supplies and fuel to hospitals." It also added, "We call on the international community to stop violations of international law against medical personnel, institutions, and ambulances."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.