Health authorities in Gaza are sounding alarm bells on the rapid spread of epidemics, as dead bodies remain scattered in the streets and under the rubble of buildings destroyed by the Israeli airstrikes.
Gaza Minister of Health Mai Alkaila warned of the large outbreak of epidemics in the coastal enclave on Tuesday.
She said the effect of the dead bodies under the rubble helps spread epidemics.
Alkaila said that necessary actions need to immediately be taken to provide vaccinations for children.
Heath experts have already pointed to the risk of diseases, such as cholera and disorders of the immune system, which are spreading throughout Gaza, whose health conditions are currently described as catastrophic.
Alkaila also reiterated on Monday that the health conditions are catastrophic as a result of the severe shortage of health personnel, equipment, and medicines.
“There are 36 hospitals in the Gaza Strip, 14 of which are partially operating, 9 in the south and 5 in the north,” said Alkaila.
She indicated that more than 1,100 medical personnel were killed or wounded in Gaza.
She deplored the decision made by several governments to suspend their funding to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).
The move, she said, will have serious repercussions, especially in light of what the Palestinian people are exposed to in the Gaza Strip.
Doctors Without Borders, known by the French acronym MSF, also said it “is deeply alarmed by the decision.”
“In the Gaza Strip, the humanitarian crisis has reached catastrophic levels, and any additional limitations on aid will result in more deaths and suffering.”
The United Nations warned last month that residents of the besieged Strip, who have so far survived Israel’s relentless bombardment of their homes, are now facing the growing threat of infectious diseases.
The war has killed more than 26,750 people since early October.
