Latest news with #fuelshortage
The National
10-07-2025
- Health
- The National
No respite for Gaza's Al Shifa Hospital from Israeli attacks and fuel shortages
Al Shifa, the last fully operating major hospital in the war-torn Gaza Strip, faces imminent shutdown after two severe Israeli raids on top of 21 months of war, and a shortage of fuel. Wounded Palestinians lie in the corridors of the hospital in Gaza city while bodies pile up in the morgue. Doctors and nurses perform surgery in squalid conditions, often by the light of mobile phones. Patients waiting outside for dialysis treatment sit among the rubble of a bombed-out hospital wing. The Palestinian Health Ministry has warned of a humanitarian catastrophe due to the severe fuel shortage which is hampering hospital operations, desalination plants and the water supply. Dr Mohammed Abu Salmiya, director of Al Shifa Hospital, on Wednesday stressed the need for an end to the Israeli blockade on fuel supplies. He warned hundreds of patients were at risk of death. "We have 13 patients in intensive care, most of them on ventilators," he said. "A hospital without oxygen cannot be a hospital." Power cuts are routine, medical supplies are scarce and storage rooms are now being used to house patients. The rooms are overcrowded and patients lie on the floor due to the lack of beds. Many of those working at the hospital are volunteers who toil for long hours without pay. Israeli forces raided Al Shifa in November 2023. They claimed to have uncovered tunnels used as command and control centres by Hamas, but failed to provide evidence of any significant network under the hospital. In April 2024, the Israeli army conducted another operation at the hospital, lasting two weeks, resulting in hundreds of deaths and injuries, arrests and extensive destruction. After Israeli forces retreated, at least three mass graves with hundreds of unrecognisable bodies were discovered at Al Shifa. Among the dead were medical, nursing and administrative staff, as well as displaced civilians who had been seeking shelter.
RNZ News
09-07-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Desperate Gaza doctors cram several babies into one incubator as fuel crisis reaches critical point
By Kareem Khadder, Ibrahim Dahman and Lucas Lilieholm , CNN CNN found four babies in one incubator at a hospital in Gaza. Photo: CNN Doctors in Gaza say they were forced to cram multiple babies into one incubator as hospitals warned that fuel shortages are forcing them to shut off vital services, putting patients' lives at risk. The UN has warned that the fuel crisis is at a critical point, with the little supplies that are available running short and "virtually no additional accessible stocks left." "Hospitals are rationing. Ambulances are stalling. Water systems are on the brink. And the deaths this is likely causing could soon rise sharply unless the Israeli authorities allow new fuel in - urgently, regularly and in sufficient quantities," the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. An 11-week Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid earlier in the year pushed the enclave's population of more than 2 million Palestinians towards famine and into a deepening humanitarian crisis. Limited aid deliveries resumed into the besieged enclave in May but aid groups have said it is not nearly enough to meet the scale of the needs. CNN approached COGAT, the Israeli agency in charge of coordinating aid deliveries into Gaza, for comment about the fuel shortages. The director of the Al-Ahli Hospital, south of Gaza City posted a photo on social media Wednesday of multiple newborn babies sharing a single incubator which was taken at another facility, Al-Helou. "This tragic overcrowding is not just a matter of missing equipment - it's a direct consequence of the relentless war on Gaza and the suffocating blockade that has crippled the entire healthcare system," Dr. Fadel Naim wrote in a post on X. "The siege has turned routine care for premature babies into a life-or-death struggle. No child should be born into a world where bombs and blockades decide whether they live or die." The director of Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza said the shortages were forcing them to close kidney dialysis sections so they could focus on intensive care and operating theatres. "If the fuel is not made available in the next few hours to Al-Shifa hospital, the hospital will become out of service in the next three hours and this will lead to high number of deaths," Dr. Mohammad Abu Silmiya told CNN, saying hundreds of patients were at risk, including 22 babies in incubators. Footage from inside the hospital showed doctors using flashlights as they treated patients. Another facility, the Nasser Medical Complex, said it had 24 hours of fuel left and was concentrating on vital departments such as maternity and intensive care. In addition to fuel shortages, difficulty finding replacement parts for the generators that power Gaza's hospitals risks is forcing more to shut down. "Not only the fuel is a major problem for us to run the generators of the hospitals, our main problem now is finding spare parts for the generators to replace old ones," Gaza's health ministry told CNN on Wednesday. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza issued an urgent statement that the facility's main generator had broken down due to a lack of spare parts, forcing it to rely on a smaller backup unit. "Fuel will run out within the coming hours, and the lives of hundreds of patients are at risk inside the hospital wards," the statement said. "The hospital's shutdown threatens to disrupt healthcare services for half a million people in the Central Governorate." Beyond hospitals, fuel is essential to keep basic services running in Gaza. The territory relies heavily on imports for cooking, desalination and wastewater plants, and to power the vehicles used in rescue efforts. Israel has restricted the entry of fuel throughout the conflict, and has previously claimed Hamas could use it to launch weapons. The aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of what it called "an unprecedented humanitarian crisis" unfolding in Gaza, in a statement Tuesday and called for a ceasefire and the entry of far greater levels of humanitarian aid. "Our teams have worked to treat the wounded and supply overwhelmed hospitals as indiscriminate attacks and a state of siege threaten millions of men, women and children," MSF said. "We urge Israeli authorities and the complicit governments that enable these atrocities, including the UK Government, to end the siege now and take action to prevent the erasure of Palestinians from Gaza." -CNN
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Desperate Gaza doctors cram several babies into one incubator as fuel crisis reaches critical point
Doctors in Gaza say they were forced to cram multiple babies into one incubator as hospitals warned that fuel shortages are forcing them to shut off vital services, putting patients' lives at risk. The UN has warned that the fuel crisis is at a critical point, with the little supplies that are available running short and 'virtually no additional accessible stocks left.' 'Hospitals are rationing. Ambulances are stalling. Water systems are on the brink. And the deaths this is likely causing could soon rise sharply unless the Israeli authorities allow new fuel in – urgently, regularly and in sufficient quantities,' the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. An 11-week Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid earlier in the year pushed the enclave's population of more than 2 million Palestinians towards famine and into a deepening humanitarian crisis. Limited aid deliveries resumed into the besieged enclave in May but aid groups have said it is not nearly enough to meet the scale of the needs. CNN has approached COGAT, the Israeli agency in charge of coordinating aid deliveries into Gaza, for comment about the fuel shortages. The director of the Al-Ahli Hospital, south of Gaza City posted a photo on social media Wednesday of multiple newborn babies sharing a single incubator which was taken at another facility, Al-Helou. 'This tragic overcrowding is not just a matter of missing equipment — it's a direct consequence of the relentless war on Gaza and the suffocating blockade that has crippled the entire healthcare system,' Dr. Fadel Naim wrote in a post on X. 'The siege has turned routine care for premature babies into a life-or-death struggle. No child should be born into a world where bombs and blockades decide whether they live or die.' The director of Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza said the shortages were forcing them to close kidney dialysis sections so they could focus on intensive care and operating theatres. 'If the fuel is not made available in the next few hours to Al-Shifa hospital, the hospital will become out of service in the next three hours and this will lead to high number of deaths,' Dr. Mohammad Abu Silmiya told CNN, saying hundreds of patients were at risk, including 22 babies in incubators. Footage from inside the hospital showed doctors using flashlights as they treated patients. Another facility, the Nasser Medical Complex, said it had 24 hours of fuel left and was concentrating on vital departments such as maternity and intensive care. In addition to fuel shortages, difficulty finding replacement parts for the generators that power Gaza's hospitals risks is forcing more to shut down. 'Not only the fuel is a major problem for us to run the generators of the hospitals, our main problem now is finding spare parts for the generators to replace old ones,' Gaza's health ministry told CNN on Wednesday. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza issued an urgent statement that the facility's main generator had broken down due to a lack of spare parts, forcing it to rely on a smaller backup unit. 'Fuel will run out within the coming hours, and the lives of hundreds of patients are at risk inside the hospital wards,' the statement said. 'The hospital's shutdown threatens to disrupt healthcare services for half a million people in the Central Governorate.' Beyond hospitals, fuel is essential to keep basic services running in Gaza. The territory relies heavily on imports for cooking, desalination and wastewater plants, and to power the vehicles used in rescue efforts. Israel has restricted the entry of fuel throughout the conflict, and has previously claimed Hamas could use it to launch weapons. The aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of what it called 'an unprecedented humanitarian crisis' unfolding in Gaza, in a statement Tuesday and called for a ceasefire and the entry of far greater levels of humanitarian aid. 'Our teams have worked to treat the wounded and supply overwhelmed hospitals as indiscriminate attacks and a state of siege threaten millions of men, women and children,' MSF said. 'We urge Israeli authorities and the complicit governments that enable these atrocities, including the UK Government, to end the siege now and take action to prevent the erasure of Palestinians from Gaza.'
CNN
09-07-2025
- Health
- CNN
Desperate Gaza doctors cram several babies into one incubator as fuel crisis reaches critical point
Doctors in Gaza say they were forced to cram multiple babies into one incubator as hospitals warned that fuel shortages are forcing them to shut off vital services, putting patients' lives at risk. The UN has warned that the fuel crisis is at a critical point, with the little supplies that are available running short and 'virtually no additional accessible stocks left.' 'Hospitals are rationing. Ambulances are stalling. Water systems are on the brink. And the deaths this is likely causing could soon rise sharply unless the Israeli authorities allow new fuel in – urgently, regularly and in sufficient quantities,' the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. An 11-week Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid earlier in the year pushed the enclave's population of more than 2 million Palestinians towards famine and into a deepening humanitarian crisis. Limited aid deliveries resumed into the besieged enclave in May but aid groups have said it is not nearly enough to meet the scale of the needs. CNN has approached COGAT, the Israeli agency in charge of coordinating aid deliveries into Gaza, for comment about the fuel shortages. The director of the Al-Ahli Hospital, south of Gaza City posted a photo on social media Wednesday of multiple newborn babies sharing a single incubator which was taken at another facility, Al-Helou. 'This tragic overcrowding is not just a matter of missing equipment — it's a direct consequence of the relentless war on Gaza and the suffocating blockade that has crippled the entire healthcare system,' Dr. Fadel Naim wrote in a post on X. 'The siege has turned routine care for premature babies into a life-or-death struggle. No child should be born into a world where bombs and blockades decide whether they live or die.' The director of Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza said the shortages were forcing them to close kidney dialysis sections so they could focus on intensive care and operating theatres. 'If the fuel is not made available in the next few hours to Al-Shifa hospital, the hospital will become out of service in the next three hours and this will lead to high number of deaths,' Dr. Mohammad Abu Silmiya told CNN, saying hundreds of patients were at risk, including 22 babies in incubators. Footage from inside the hospital showed doctors using flashlights as they treated patients. Another facility, the Nasser Medical Complex, said it had 24 hours of fuel left and was concentrating on vital departments such as maternity and intensive care. In addition to fuel shortages, difficulty finding replacement parts for the generators that power Gaza's hospitals risks is forcing more to shut down. 'Not only the fuel is a major problem for us to run the generators of the hospitals, our main problem now is finding spare parts for the generators to replace old ones,' Gaza's health ministry told CNN on Wednesday. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza issued an urgent statement that the facility's main generator had broken down due to a lack of spare parts, forcing it to rely on a smaller backup unit. 'Fuel will run out within the coming hours, and the lives of hundreds of patients are at risk inside the hospital wards,' the statement said. 'The hospital's shutdown threatens to disrupt healthcare services for half a million people in the Central Governorate.' Beyond hospitals, fuel is essential to keep basic services running in Gaza. The territory relies heavily on imports for cooking, desalination and wastewater plants, and to power the vehicles used in rescue efforts. Israel has restricted the entry of fuel throughout the conflict, and has previously claimed Hamas could use it to launch weapons. The aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of what it called 'an unprecedented humanitarian crisis' unfolding in Gaza, in a statement Tuesday and called for a ceasefire and the entry of far greater levels of humanitarian aid. 'Our teams have worked to treat the wounded and supply overwhelmed hospitals as indiscriminate attacks and a state of siege threaten millions of men, women and children,' MSF said. 'We urge Israeli authorities and the complicit governments that enable these atrocities, including the UK Government, to end the siege now and take action to prevent the erasure of Palestinians from Gaza.'
CNN
09-07-2025
- Health
- CNN
Desperate Gaza doctors cram several babies into one incubator as fuel crisis reaches critical point
Doctors in Gaza say they were forced to cram multiple babies into one incubator as hospitals warned that fuel shortages are forcing them to shut off vital services, putting patients' lives at risk. The UN has warned that the fuel crisis is at a critical point, with the little supplies that are available running short and 'virtually no additional accessible stocks left.' 'Hospitals are rationing. Ambulances are stalling. Water systems are on the brink. And the deaths this is likely causing could soon rise sharply unless the Israeli authorities allow new fuel in – urgently, regularly and in sufficient quantities,' the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. An 11-week Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid earlier in the year pushed the enclave's population of more than 2 million Palestinians towards famine and into a deepening humanitarian crisis. Limited aid deliveries resumed into the besieged enclave in May but aid groups have said it is not nearly enough to meet the scale of the needs. CNN has approached COGAT, the Israeli agency in charge of coordinating aid deliveries into Gaza, for comment about the fuel shortages. The director of the Al-Ahli Hospital, south of Gaza City posted a photo on social media Wednesday of multiple newborn babies sharing a single incubator which was taken at another facility, Al-Helou. 'This tragic overcrowding is not just a matter of missing equipment — it's a direct consequence of the relentless war on Gaza and the suffocating blockade that has crippled the entire healthcare system,' Dr. Fadel Naim wrote in a post on X. 'The siege has turned routine care for premature babies into a life-or-death struggle. No child should be born into a world where bombs and blockades decide whether they live or die.' The director of Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza said the shortages were forcing them to close kidney dialysis sections so they could focus on intensive care and operating theatres. 'If the fuel is not made available in the next few hours to Al-Shifa hospital, the hospital will become out of service in the next three hours and this will lead to high number of deaths,' Dr. Mohammad Abu Silmiya told CNN, saying hundreds of patients were at risk, including 22 babies in incubators. Footage from inside the hospital showed doctors using flashlights as they treated patients. Another facility, the Nasser Medical Complex, said it had 24 hours of fuel left and was concentrating on vital departments such as maternity and intensive care. In addition to fuel shortages, difficulty finding replacement parts for the generators that power Gaza's hospitals risks is forcing more to shut down. 'Not only the fuel is a major problem for us to run the generators of the hospitals, our main problem now is finding spare parts for the generators to replace old ones,' Gaza's health ministry told CNN on Wednesday. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza issued an urgent statement that the facility's main generator had broken down due to a lack of spare parts, forcing it to rely on a smaller backup unit. 'Fuel will run out within the coming hours, and the lives of hundreds of patients are at risk inside the hospital wards,' the statement said. 'The hospital's shutdown threatens to disrupt healthcare services for half a million people in the Central Governorate.' Beyond hospitals, fuel is essential to keep basic services running in Gaza. The territory relies heavily on imports for cooking, desalination and wastewater plants, and to power the vehicles used in rescue efforts. Israel has restricted the entry of fuel throughout the conflict, and has previously claimed Hamas could use it to launch weapons. The aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of what it called 'an unprecedented humanitarian crisis' unfolding in Gaza, in a statement Tuesday and called for a ceasefire and the entry of far greater levels of humanitarian aid. 'Our teams have worked to treat the wounded and supply overwhelmed hospitals as indiscriminate attacks and a state of siege threaten millions of men, women and children,' MSF said. 'We urge Israeli authorities and the complicit governments that enable these atrocities, including the UK Government, to end the siege now and take action to prevent the erasure of Palestinians from Gaza.'
