WHO Warns Infectious Diseases Spreading Out of Control in Gaza

October 17, 2025 | 09:41 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that infectious diseases are "spreading out of control" in Gaza, where only 13 of the originally 36 hospitals are barely functioning.

UN Regional Health Director Hanan Balkhy said, "Whether meningitis... diarrhea, respiratory illnesses, we’re talking about a mammoth amount of work," as reported by Al Arabiya.

Despite the ceasefire last week, humanitarian workers still face challenges in Gaza. According to the UN report, about 42,000 Palestinians have suffered "significant injuries," a quarter of whom are children.

"We need more fuel to go into Gaza, we need more food, more medical equipment, medications, medics, doctors," she said in an interview last Wednesday in Cairo, echoing demands from international leaders for Israel to allow a significant increase in aid to enter.

The ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas has raised hopes for life-saving aid and healthcare services to finally reach the Palestinian residents in Gaza after two years of war. However, Balkhy warned that the challenges ahead are "unimaginable."

The two-year war has caused a crisis in the healthcare infrastructure in Gaza. Even the standing hospitals struggle due to the destruction of basic healthcare facilities.

Israel has further hindered Palestinians by restricting permits for Palestinians to leave Gaza for medical evacuation.

Balkhy said, "More than a million people need 'urgent support,' but the available healthcare is far from sufficient."

WHO data shows that there are only eight healthcare facilities, all of which are partially functional, in Gaza City, the main urban center of the region.

WHO stated that the remaining hospitals in Gaza suffer from severe shortages of medical personnel. They also face hunger and intense attacks by Israel, which has taken nearly 68,000 Palestinian lives according to the region's health ministry.

The UN considers these numbers to be reliable.

For Balkhy, when people talk about repairing the destroyed Gaza hospitals, "the question is how many of them are available for rehabilitation versus (having to) rebuild all over again?"

"We’re talking about billions of dollars, and we’re talking about decades of work," she said, after the region's healthcare system was basically destroyed.

Since the Israeli genocide in Gaza two years ago, the Gaza healthcare facilities have suffered over 800 attacks, according to the UN data.

"There is very little left of the healthcare system. You have children that were born over the past two years, who many of them, I’m assuming, have received zero doses of immunizations," Balkhy said.

Balkhy calls for patients from Gaza to regain "access the West Bank and Jerusalem, so that they can get the care that is available right close by, and that’s the place where they used to go for care."

Health Crisis from All Angles

In a study released in May 2025, it was stated that the health issues in Gaza require multinational coordination to strengthen aid systems to control the spread of diseases.

The study conducted by East Mediterr Health stated that the genocide in Gaza has resulted in contaminated water sources, damaged waste disposal systems, severe population density, waste accumulation, high insect populations, damaged healthcare facilities, and inadequate vaccination coverage.

Diseases spreading in Gaza include scabies, chickenpox, hepatitis A, respiratory infections, diarrheal diseases, and polio, with the first polio case reported in Deir al-Balah in an unvaccinated child.

This health crisis does not yet cover the medical emergency conditions required by the victims of military operations by Israel in Gaza.

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