GENEVA, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that Israel’s ongoing restrictions on medical supplies entering Gaza are crippling the health response and heightening the risk of disease outbreaks, with consequences that could extend beyond the coastal enclave and affect the entire region.
In press remarks on Monday, Hanan Balkhy, WHO regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, said the deteriorating situation in Gaza is no longer limited to the impact of attacks but now includes the systematic obstruction of access to healthcare, leaving civilians increasingly vulnerable.
Balkhy stressed that access to medical care is now “severely threatened,” with Gaza’s health system pushed to its limits amid dwindling resources, restricted movement, and surging needs.
She noted that life‑saving supplies are available but are not being allowed into the Strip.
“Trucks, medicines, and medical equipment are waiting, while patients receive no care or extremely limited care,” she said, adding that most crossings into Gaza remain closed and the flow of medical aid is “severely constrained,” undermining the entire health response.
She warned that fuel entering Gaza remains far below the minimum required, forcing hospitals to operate on rotating power schedules.
“Without fuel, hospitals will stop functioning,” she said. “This threatens not only the hospitals themselves but the entire health system.”
Balkhy added that the recent escalation has also disrupted the ceasefire framework, which was intended to facilitate aid delivery and ensure medical evacuations.
She said medical evacuations remain irregular and unpredictable, depriving critically ill patients of access to life‑saving treatment.
Reconstruction of Gaza’s devastated infrastructure, including hospitals and homes, could take decades, she said, creating conditions that allow diseases to spread and health needs to intensify.
Since the “ceasefire” started on October 11, 2025, only 388 patients, including 47 children, have been evacuated for treatment outside Gaza. Since October 2023, WHO has assisted in evacuating 3,668 patients.
