Hospitals in the Gaza Strip are “on the verge of collapse”, as the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned this Saturday (21), saying that the number of patients undergoing treatment or waiting to be treated is 150% higher than the capacity of health units.
The agency also stated that people are lying on the floor and in the corridors.
According to OCHA, 60% of primary healthcare facilities have been closed in Gaza, while hospitals struggle to function due to shortages of energy, medicines, equipment and specialized staff.
“Only eight (of the 22) health centers of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East in Middle, Khan Younis and Rafah provinces are providing primary health care services to critical outpatients and patients requiring treatment for non-communicable diseases,” the statement said.
The water situation in Gaza also remains serious. The last desalination plant in operation closed last Sunday (14) due to a lack of fuel, as well as the last wastewater treatment plant in operation, the UN reported.
“Water production from municipal groundwater sources is less than 5% of the pre-hostilities level. The three seawater desalination plants, which, prior to hostilities, produced 7% of Gaza’s water supply, are currently not operational, having been shut down in most areas due to lack of fuel, insecurity and roads blocked by rubble.” , said OCHA.
“Bottled water is practically unavailable and its price has made it unaffordable for most families. Private vendors, who operate small desalination and water purification plants, which run mainly on solar energy, have become the main suppliers of drinking water,” the OCHA statement added.
Sanitation is deteriorating. All five wastewater treatments in Gaza were shut down due to power outages. As a result, most of the sewage is being dumped into the sea.
“The majority of the 65 sewage pumping stations are not operating,” according to OCHA. Garbage is also piling up.
Food security is unstable. Three of the five World Food Program (WFP) bakeries in Gaza closed last Friday (20) due to fuel shortages and a lack of ingredients.
Wheat flour in Gaza could run out in “about five days”, and only one of the five mills is currently in operation.
See also: Hamas says Palestinians will not leave Gaza Strip
Source: CNN Brasil
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