As the enclave’s healthcare system teeters on collapse after over 18 months of war, Gaza’s Health Ministry warned that repeated evacuation orders and continuous shelling near hospitals could render the remaining medical facilities inoperable.
Hospitals still operating face escalating challenges in providing care due to shortages of medical supplies and lack of safe access for both patients and medical staff, the ministry said in a statement. “The deteriorating security situation hampers the work of medical teams and disrupts emergency response efforts.”
Nasser Medical Complex (NMC) in Khan Younis treats hundreds of patients and wounded individuals daily, and any halt to its operations would lead to “catastrophic and unpredictable consequences,” the statement added, highlighting the complex as the main healthcare hub in southern Gaza.
The ministry urged international intervention to protect health facilities and secure safe corridors for medical supplies, staff, and patients, stressing that temporary fixes are no longer sufficient as medical needs rise and stability remains elusive.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) also said it was “extremely worried about the evacuation orders around the Nasser Medical Complex. NMC is indispensable to the health system in Gaza – no other medical facilities can take in patients who need specialized care. It is critical that it remains open and accessible to medical personnel and patients.”
“Repeated evacuation orders are isolating and undermining what little is left of the health-care system in Gaza,” said Adrian Zimmerman, head of the ICRC’s Gaza sub-delegation. “The remaining health-care facilities depend strongly on working together through transfer of patients, and exchanges of medical supplies and ambulance services.”
As of 30 June 2024, 22 of the 36 hospitals across Gaza were reported as non-functional, and by Jan. 2025, only 18 remained partially functional. Currently, across the Gaza Strip, only 2000 hospital beds remain available, for a population of over 2 million people, grossly insufficient to meet the current needs.
According to the latest figures from the Palestinian Health Ministry, the death toll from Israel’s offensive in Gaza has reached 55,362, with 128,741 wounded since Oct. 7, 2023.
Israel’s occupation military killed six people in airstrikes on Gaza City and Deir al-Balah on Sunday evening, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
