Daijiworld Media Network – Gaza

Gaza, Jul 11: In a heart-wrenching situation unfolding in Gaza, doctors at the Al Shifa Medical Centre—the largest hospital in the region—are being forced to place multiple premature babies into a single incubator due to severe fuel shortages threatening to shut down hospitals across the war-torn territory.

As Israel's military campaign continues, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has deepened, with healthcare facilities on the verge of total collapse. Medical personnel have raised alarm over the dire fuel crisis, which they say could lead to the deaths of vulnerable patients—not from bombs, but from the silent suffocation of a medical siege.

“We are forced to place four, five, or sometimes three premature babies in one incubator,” revealed Dr Mohammed Abu Selmia, director of Al Shifa hospital. “Their condition is extremely critical.”

The crisis, according to Dr Muneer Alboursh, Director General of Gaza’s Ministry of Health, stems not from direct bombardment but from restrictions on fuel, the lifeline of Gaza’s healthcare system. “This is depriving these vulnerable people of their basic right to medical care, turning the hospital into a silent graveyard,” he stated emotionally.

An Israeli military spokesperson countered the claims, stating that about 160,000 litres of fuel had entered Gaza since Wednesday for humanitarian use. However, they clarified that the distribution of this fuel was not under Israeli control, and they were unaware whether any had reached Al Shifa.

United Nations agencies echoed the concerns raised by Gaza’s health officials. The World Health Organization (WHO) described the region’s health sector as being “on its knees.” Only half of Gaza’s 36 general hospitals are functioning even partially, leaving patients in desperate need.

Dr Abu Selmia further disclosed that the hospital’s dialysis department has already been shut down to conserve power for ICUs and operating rooms—units that cannot risk even a brief blackout. “There are around 100 premature babies in Gaza City hospitals whose lives hang in the balance,” he added.

Before the conflict, northern Gaza had 110 incubators. Now, only 40 remain functional, raising serious concerns about the survival of newborns.

In southern Gaza, Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis is facing a similar crisis. Spokesperson Mohammed Sakr said the hospital requires 4,500 litres of fuel daily but has just 3,000 litres left. “Doctors are now performing surgeries without electricity or air conditioning. Sweat from the staff is dripping into patients' wounds,” he said.

James Elder, a spokesperson for UNICEF who recently returned from Gaza, summed up the situation: “You can have the best hospital staff on the planet, but if they are denied medicines, painkillers, and now the very fuel that powers the lights—it becomes an impossibility.”

As the war enters its 21st month, medics in Gaza continue their battle—not just to save lives, but to keep their hospitals alive.