Gaza Healthcare Collapse Persists After Three Years of War

Three years of war in Gaza have reduced the territory’s healthcare system to a state of near-total collapse, with critical shortages of oxygen, medicines, and staff persisting across the Strip, Al Jazeera reported. Physicians for Human Rights Israel and the World Health Organization report that not a single hospital in Gaza is currently fully operational, leaving thousands of patients unable to access life-saving care.

Gaza retains partial hospital operations without full capacity facilities

Before the conflict began in October 2023, Gaza relied on 36 hospitals. According to a report by Physicians for Human Rights Israel cited by The Times of Israel, 14 hospitals were partially functioning in October 2025. Nearly a year later, 20 hospitals remain partially operational, but zero facilities function at full capacity. A World Health Organization assessment indicates only 19 remain partially functioning now. Data from the World Health Organization, reported by Anadolu Ajansı, shows that Gaza’s health services retain only 2,253 inpatient beds, 104 intensive care beds, 343 maternity beds, 384 emergency room beds, and 126 incubators for a population exceeding two million people.

Primary healthcare infrastructure has suffered similar destruction. Out of 233 primary health facilities, only 146 remain functional, according to Anadolu Ajansı. The destruction extends to medical personnel. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that more than 1,700 health workers have been killed across at least 920 attacks on medical facilities and staff over the three-year period, with 386 ambulances also affected.

Medical facilities face severe shortages of oxygen and supplies

Medical facilities face acute shortages of basic supplies, including IV fluids, anaesthetics, surgical instruments, and reliable electricity. Oxygen availability has reached a critical threshold. The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that 22 of Gaza’s 34 oxygen stations stopped working by August, leaving only four of 30 cylinder-filling machines operational. More than 500 patients, including cancer patients, individuals with pulmonary fibrosis and heart conditions, and babies in intensive care, rely on oxygen around the clock.

Israeli authorities classify spare parts needed to repair oxygen generators and medical machinery as “dual-use” items, heavily restricting their entry. Essential medications such as insulin, alongside diagnostic equipment and generator fuel, remain scarce, leaving doctors to make clinical decisions without standard diagnostic tests.

Stalled medical evacuations cause preventable patient deaths in Gaza

Stalled medical evacuations and restricted hospital transfers continue to cause preventable deaths among patients with severe conditions. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry reported that between October 2023 and July 2026, at least 1,570 patients died while awaiting evacuation, a total that includes 505 cancer patients and 264 children. The World Health Organization estimates that more than 15,000 people remain on waiting lists for medical evacuation; if delayed too long, many could be lost to a preventable death.

The restrictions on patient transfers affect access to specialized facilities outside Gaza. Prior to October 7, patients regularly transferred to hospitals in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, but Israel barred those transfers following the outbreak of the war.

Delays in diagnosis compound the crisis. Al Jazeera documented the case of a 65-year-old patient named Iktimal, whose cervical biopsy was delayed for over a month due to a lack of laboratory testing supplies. By the time Israeli authorities approved her medical evacuation to Egypt, her condition was critical, and she died two weeks later.

Post-Ceasefire Security and Casualties

More than 1,470 people have been killed since the “ceasefire” began on October 10 last year. As the security situation has deteriorated, Medical Aid for Palestinians has had to suspend services in parts of Gaza. Last month, Israeli military quadcopter fire killed a 65-year-old patient seeking treatment at a health centre in Jabalia supported by the organization.

Gaza tracks intensive care bed totals and oxygen station failures

In July 2026, the High Court declined to intervene in the evacuation policy and instructed the state to provide an update by December 21, 2026.

More on this story: Israelis Feel Toll of Prolonged War Years After October 7