Palestinian Health Authorities have issued a dire warning that the hospitals still operating in the Gaza Strip are facing imminent closure unless urgent fuel supplies are received within the next two days. This development threatens to exacerbate an already dire humanitarian situation in the conflict-ridden region.

Urgent Need for Fuel in Gaza Hospitals

The recent announcement coming from Palestine has underlined the critical situation faced by Gaza’s medical facilities. According to a report on Sputnik World, all hospitals in the area are in dire need of fuel to maintain their services. Without intervention, the healthcare infrastructure is at risk of complete shutdown.

Recent Escalation in Conflict Leading to Crisis

In recent weeks, the situation in Gaza has deteriorated significantly. On October 7, the Palestinian movement Hamas launched a major offensive, firing thousands of missiles from the Gaza Strip and breaching the southern Israeli borders in an armed incursion. This prompted Israel’s Prime Minister to declare that the nation is at war, resulting in the mobilization of 360,000 Israeli reservists and an aggressive aerial bombardment campaign over Gaza. By late October, Israeli troops entered the Strip to target Hamas infrastructure and to attempt the rescue of over 200 hostages.

International Scrutiny and Humanitarian Concerns

As hostilities intensified, several hospitals in the northern area of Gaza have become the center of international attention. They are now sheltering hundreds of patients, medical workers, and displaced persons. The siege surrounding the hospitals is tightening, with Israel accusing Hamas of using the buildings and their inhabitants as human shields.

The conflict has had a devastating human cost with approximately 1,200 fatalities and close to 5,500 injuries on the Israeli side, and nearly 11,200 fatalities – including more than 4,600 minors – and over 28,000 injuries in Gaza, based on official figures.

The Struggle for Power and Influence

‘A power vacuum’: Noted journalist Seymour Hersh has provided an explanation as to why the current U.S. administration under President Joe Biden is unable to exert influence over Israel in these critical times.

Hospital Shutdowns Are Imminent

The Health Minister of Palestine, Mai Kaila, communicated via Al Arabiya that the supply of fuel is essential for hospitals to continue operating. Already, 25 hospitals have halted their services due to the lack of fuel or have been damaged through bombings, and only 10 remain functional. If the fuel crisis is not addressed within 48 hours, it is feared that these last bastions of healthcare in Gaza will cease to function.

This urgent humanitarian matter underscores the desperate need for a resolution to the fuel crisis, to prevent further loss of life and suffering in a region already steeped in conflict and turmoil.