Palestine. Humanitarian situation. Problemas sociosanitarios. ENG ESP

2 Oct 2025

Humanitarian Situation Update #327 | Gaza Strip

 

Key Highlights

 

• People in Gaza city are facing deteriorating access to means of survival amid intensified bombardment, collapsing lifelines, and a growing number of aid organizations forced to suspend operations.
•  
• Cooked meal provision in northern Gaza has dropped by 70 per cent, with only eight kitchens currently operational, the Food Security Sector reports.
•  
• One million people are accessing less than the emergency minimum of six litres of drinking water per day, according to a recent assessment by water, sanitation and hygiene partners.
•  
• The UN and its partners continue to face physical and bureaucratic impediments, preventing them from providing lifesaving assistance at scale in the Gaza Strip.
•  
• Attacks on or near hospitals and other health facilities continue to be reported.
•  
• Environmental damage in the Gaza Strip has dramatically worsened since June 2024, according to the UN Environment Programme.
•  

Challenges Facing the Health-Care System

• On 28 October, Al-Helou maternity hospital in Gaza city sustained damage due to nearby strikes, causing panic and fear among patients and medical staff, but no injuries were reported. Citing MoH staff, MSF reported that at the time of the incident, there were 12 newborns in the neonatal intensive care unit, five patients in internal medicine department, and two obstetric patients in the hospital, among others. On 29 September, OHCHR stated that “Israel’s military attacks on and around hospitals in Gaza city are leaving sick and injured civilians with nowhere to turn to for life-saving care, as escalating attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure are leading to countless casualties,” noting that it recorded at least 17 attacks on or near health facilities across Gaza city between 16 and 28 September. On 29 September, at the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, a nurse was critically injured by a gunshot to the head while performing his duties inside the hospital.
•  
• Neonatal care across the Gaza Strip is critically strained amid severe supply shortages and escalating insecurity, with facilities operating far beyond their intended capacity. The Head of the Neonatal Unit at Nasser, Dr. Hatem Duhair, reported that the neonatal unit is functioning under catastrophic conditions; the facility was designed to accommodate 17 infants, but is caring for 26, with numbers expected to increase. In some cases, two newborns are sharing a single incubator, and additional incubators have been placed between existing units to manage the high caseload. Dr. Duhair added that only five ventilators are available for all 26 infants, forcing medical teams to prioritize which infants receive life-saving support, including those in need of urgent surgery. Dr. Duhair noted that the increase in births is directly linked to the influx of displaced families from northern Gaza, placing further strain on already overstretched resources. The neonatal unit is currently operating at 150 to 170 per cent of its designed capacity, while the overflow nursery designed for nine infants is now hosting 30, he added.
•  
• Medicine and medical consumables in the Gaza Strip are at crisis levels. On 25 September, MoH in Gaza reported that 54 per cent of essential drugs and 66 per cent of medical consumables were at zero-stock levels. In emergency departments, the situation is particularly alarming, with 45 per cent of items unavailable, including surgical supplies, critically affecting life-saving procedures. The MoH is also facing severe shortages of blood units, blood bags and transfusion sets, with supplies expected to run out imminently.
•  
• A surge in cases of infectious diseases is a growing concern. According to the Health Cluster, over 1,300 suspected cases of meningitis (primarily viral) have been reported between May and September 2025, with no deaths to date. In parallel, since June 2025, 122 cases of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) have been recorded, along with 16 associated deaths; these included 19 GBS cases and three deaths reported in September, the Health Cluster reported. The response to GBS is severely constrained by the limited availability of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and plasma filters, which are essential for treatment. The Health Cluster noted that the last shipment of Plasma filters entered Gaza in mid-September while the IVIG is planned to enter in early October 2025.
•  

ESPAÑOL

Actualización de la situación humanitaria n.° 327 | Franja de Gaza