Today's Edition
ISIDORA CIRIC (ABU DHABI)
Gaza’s health crisis is worsening, with nearly 40,000 cases of Hepatitis A reported since the start of the conflict, UNRWA said on Tuesday. Adding to the health woes, the Gaza health ministry has declared the territory “a polio epidemic area”, after the WHO detected traces of it in wastewater samples last week.
Nearly 300 days into the Gaza war, civilians continue to bear the brunt of the escalating hostilities. According to the latest report, published by 20 aid agencies, 86% of Gaza is under “evacuation orders”, forcing the 2.1 million inhabitants to cram into the remaining 14% of the territory. These crowded conditions, coupled with disruptions in aid delivery reported by humanitarian organisations, have left many without adequate access to clean water, soap, or hygiene supplies.
As a consequence of the worsening humanitarian conditions, Gazans have been facing numerous health concerns, with the latest being a surge in Hepatitis A cases.
The recent Hepatitis A outbreak has affected nearly 40,000 individuals since the onset of the war, UNRWA warned, with 800 to 1,000 new cases reported weekly across its health centers and shelters.
“The Hepatitis A outbreak is spreading in Gaza during the war. Families are displaced and live in dire and inhuman conditions in overcrowded camps and shelters. They lack clean water, hygiene kits, and proper waste and sewage management,” said Dr Ghada Al-Jadba, Chief of the UNRWA Health Programme in the Gaza Strip.
Adding to the escalating health crisis, the Gaza health ministry declared the territory a “polio epidemic area” on Tuesday, with the World Health Organization (WHO) warning that tens of thousands of children under age five are now at risk of contracting it.
While no actual cases have been officially reported so far, the WHO said last week that traces of polio were detected in six wastewater samples, adding that the possibility of the disease spreading beyond Gaza cannot be ruled out.
“Having vaccine-derived poliovirus in the sewage very likely means that it’s out there somewhere in people,” WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said, adding that 75% of people infected by polio don’t show any symptoms.
“That means it most likely is in the population but it doesn’t necessarily mean that we see an outbreak of cases,” Lindmeier added.
Humanitarian organisations have been racing to provide the much-needed supplies and assistance. However, their efforts were met with hurdles at every step, with OCHA reporting on July 26 that the average daily volume of humanitarian aid entering Gaza has decreased by 56% since April.
Save the Children also reported on Tuesday that attacks on “humanitarian zones” and ongoing relocation orders have crippled efforts to provide life-saving supplies.
“Many organisations have supplies approved and waiting to enter, but the unloading zone at the Kerem Shalom/Karam Abu Salem border crossing on the Gaza side has been full for weeks due to high insecurity, Israeli military operations and risk of looting given soaring needs facing families,” the NGO said in a statement.
Save the Children managed to get four trucks (80 pallets) of medical supplies into Gaza on a convoy after waiting at the Kerem Shalom crossing in the heat for over a month, following hostilities on the Gaza side of the border.
“We are doing everything we can to save children’s lives in Gaza, but our job becomes more and more challenging by the day. There is no space left, and barely enough life-saving supplies to keep children alive. Without access to critical assistance, lives will continue to be lost,” said Save the Children’s Regional Director for the Middle East, Jeremy Stoner.
