BRATISLAVA, January 14 (IPS) – Israel should elevate all restrictions on medication, meals and assist coming into Gaza, rights teams have demanded, as two studies launched right this moment (Jan 14) doc how maternal and reproductive healthcare have been all however destroyed within the nation.
In two separate studies launched collectively, Physicians for Human Rights (with the International Human Rights Clinic on the College of Chicago Legislation Faculty) and Physicians for Human Rights–Israel (PHR-I) present how the struggle in Gaza has led to rising maternal and neonatal mortality, births underneath harmful circumstances, and the systematic destruction of well being companies for ladies in Gaza.
The studies from the 2 teams, that are impartial organizations, present each detailed scientific evaluation of the collapse of Gaza’s well being system and its medical penalties in addition to firsthand testimonies from clinicians and pregnant and breastfeeding ladies in Gaza pressured to reside and care for his or her newborns in excessive circumstances.
And the organizations say that with circumstances enhancing solely marginally for a lot of ladies regardless of the present ceasefire, Israel should roll again restrictions positioned on assist and instantly assist guarantee individuals in Gaza get entry to the healthcare they want.
“Israel’s destruction of Gaza’s well being infrastructure, mixed with untreated malnutrition ensuing from restrictions on meals and medical provides, together with child method, has created an surroundings through which the basic organic processes of replica and survival have been systematically destroyed, leading to identified and foreseeable hurt, ache, struggling, and demise,” Sam Zarifi, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) Govt Director, stated.
“Israel should instantly permit meals and important medical materials to enter Gaza with a correct medical plan for serving to the besieged inhabitants,” he added.
Israeli navy operations following Hamas’s assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, have left large destruction throughout Gaza, together with to healthcare amenities. Based on UNICEF, 94 p.c of hospitals have been broken or destroyed.
Maternal and reproductive healthcare has suffered. Earlier than the struggle, Gaza had eight neonatal intensive care items with 178 incubators. As we speak, the variety of incubators has dropped by 70 p.c. Within the north, there have been 105 incubators throughout three NICUs, now there are barely any useful items remaining, UNICEF advised IPS.
It says that the numbers of low beginning weight infants have practically tripled in comparison with pre-war ranges and the variety of first-day deaths of infants elevated by 75 p.c.
The PHR and PHR-I studies paint an identical image.
The PHR report, which focuses on the interval between January 2025 and October 2025 when a ceasefire was agreed, particulars how between Could and June final 12 months, the Palestinian Ministry of Well being reported a 41 p.c lower within the beginning price in Gaza in comparison with the identical time interval in 2022; there was a major enhance in miscarriages that affected greater than 2,600 ladies, and 220 pregnancy-related deaths that occurred earlier than supply.
The ministry additionally reported a pointy enhance in untimely births and low beginning weight circumstances; over 1,460 infants have been reported to be born prematurely, whereas greater than 2,500 have been admitted to neonatal intensive care. New child deaths additionally elevated, with at the very least 21 infants reported to have died on their first day of life.
In the meantime, the PHR-I report contains private testimonies illustrating the extreme issues pregnant ladies and girls with newborns have confronted in Gaza throughout the struggle, from missing protected routes to care and being pressured to offer beginning in unsanitary, harmful circumstances to battling starvation and extreme meals shortages as they attempt to breastfeed their kids.
One girl, Samah Muhammad Abu Mustafa, a 30-year-old mom of two from Khuza’a, Khan Youni, described how when her contractions started in the course of the night time, as a result of there have been no autos and only a few ambulances, that are reserved for shelling or different crucial emergencies, she needed to stroll an extended distance via rain. When she ultimately reached the hospital, she stated it was “horrifying.”
“I swear, one girl gave beginning within the hall, and her child died. It was very crowded, and the docs labored nonstop. I felt as if I might give beginning at any second. After giving beginning to my eldest daughter, I used to be advised I shouldn’t ship naturally once more as a result of my pelvis was too slim. Regardless of this, the docs stated I must ship naturally as a result of a cesarean part required anesthesia, and there was not sufficient obtainable. I stood for 3 hours till it was lastly my flip, with out sitting even for a second,” she stated.
However regardless of the October 2025 ceasefire, large issues stay with ladies’s entry to and the supply of, maternal and reproductive healthcare in Gaza.
“Maternal well being items in Gaza are largely non-functional and face crucial shortages of important medicines, consumables, and gear,” Lama Bakri, undertaking coordinator within the Occupied Territories Division at PHR-I, advised IPS.
“Neonatal and diagnostic gear stays scarce or blocked, together with moveable incubators for untimely and low-birth-weight newborns. Though some assist has entered for the reason that ceasefire, these gaps usually are not being addressed on the scale required, and significant enchancment within the fast future stays unlikely.”
Malnutrition additionally stays a major problem.
“The ceasefire has allowed us to considerably scale up our diet response, however we’re nonetheless treating pregnant and breastfeeding ladies for acute malnutrition in alarmingly excessive numbers,” Ricardo Pires, Communication Supervisor, Division of International Communications & Advocacy at UNICEF, advised IPS.
He stated that between July and September 2025 about 38 p.c of pregnant ladies screened have been identified with acute malnutrition.
“In October alone, we admitted 8,300 pregnant and breastfeeding ladies for remedy, about 270 a day, in a spot the place there was no discernible malnutrition amongst this group earlier than October 2023,” he added.
UNICEF has documented nearly 6,800 kids admitted for acute malnutrition remedy in November 2025 in comparison with 4,700 circumstances in November 2024. Up to now, the variety of admitted circumstances greater than doubled in 2025 in comparison with 2024: nearly 89,000 admissions of kids to this point in 2025, in comparison with 40,000 circumstances in 2024, and nearly none earlier than 2023.
“What we’re seeing is that no youngster meets minimal dietary range requirements, and two-thirds of kids are surviving on simply two meals teams or much less. Round 90 p.c of caregivers reported their kids had been sick within the earlier two weeks, which compounds the malnutrition disaster,” Pires stated.
And there are fears for the longer-term demographic way forward for Gaza given the injury to maternal and reproductive healthcare.
“For Gaza’s demographic future, the implications are critical. Even with reconstruction, we might be coping with a technology of kids who have been scarred earlier than they took their first breath, kids who might face lifelong well being issues, developmental challenges, and the consequences of stunting. The rebuilding should begin now, however we must be clear-eyed: the injury to maternal and new child well being will echo for years, doubtlessly many years,” stated Pires.
However others say that with cooperation between worldwide actors and the correct political will, the scenario needn’t stay so dire.
“To rehabilitate the inhabitants after the whole lot that has occurred goes to be an actual subject, [but] now there’s a Board of Peace, the wants of pregnant ladies and maternal and reproductive healthcare will be prioritized,” Zarifi advised IPS.
“The capability and the need exist amongst Gazans and Gazan healthcare staff to rebuild the healthcare system, together with maternal and reproductive well being companies,” added Bakri. “The first impediment isn’t technical or skilled however political: Israel’s management over Gaza’s borders and the restrictions on the entry of important gear, medical provides, and reconstruction supplies. With unrestricted entry to what’s wanted to rehabilitate hospitals, rebuild destroyed items, and restock important medicines, restoration is fully possible. Whether or not maternal and reproductive healthcare can return to pre-war ranges is dependent upon sustained worldwide strain to permit that entry.”
Though some assist has entered for the reason that ceasefire, these gaps usually are not being addressed on the scale required, and significant enchancment within the fast future stays unlikely.
Nevertheless, whereas each NGOs like PHR and PHR-I and others, alongside worldwide our bodies just like the UN, stress that any restoration and reconstruction in Gaza requires the ceasefire to carry and consolidate, repeated violations underline its fragility, and the impact that has on ladies.
In the meantime, PHR and PHR-I level out that excessive climate and ongoing Israeli restrictions on medication and meals attending to Gaza to at the present time proceed to severely have an effect on pregnant ladies, new moms, and infants. On high of this, Israel has additionally introduced it is going to bar 37 worldwide assist teams from working in Gaza, doubtlessly compounding the issues.
Bakri stated such measures have been jeopardizing what small positive aspects had been made for the reason that ceasefire and “elevate critical considerations about whether or not the scenario can enhance.”
“Even after the ceasefire, whereas bombardment has decreased, the truth these ladies face stays catastrophic – not just for their our bodies and well-being however for the survival of your entire society,” stated Bakri.
Zarifi added, “We’re fearful that the restrictions positioned by Israel on a number of the main actors within the humanitarian response will hamper entry to help for those who want it. We now have raised questions with the Israeli authorities as to why particular medicines usually are not allowed to be introduced into Gaza and so they say that they don’t seem to be stopping them from being introduced in however they are often introduced in by industrial means. That’s exhausting for individuals who can barely put any cash collectively. These medicines ought to positively be coming in via humanitarian channels.”
He additionally highlighted how vital the difficulty of accountability is in guaranteeing any progress is made in rebuilding healthcare in Gaza and likewise limiting the likelihood of comparable devastation sooner or later.
Each studies concluded that the harms brought on by Israeli assaults usually are not remoted incidents however a part of an ongoing sample of systematic injury to the well being of girls and their kids in Gaza, amounting to reproductive violence.
Israel has denied this and stated that assaults on hospitals in Gaza have been as a result of the medical amenities are being utilized by Hamas, and it has maintained that its forces adhere to worldwide regulation.
Whereas underneath worldwide regulation healthcare amenities have particular safety even in struggle, and assaults on them are prohibited, that safety is misplaced if they’re deemed to satisfy standards to be thought of navy targets, akin to housing militaries and arms.
Nevertheless, any assault on them should nonetheless adjust to the basic rules of distinction, proportionality and precautions in assault and failure to respect any of those rules constitutes a breach of worldwide humanitarian regulation, in line with the UN.
“These assaults are a part of a deliberate coverage designed to create a domino impact of struggling. From hunger and militarized assist distribution by the GHF, to lack of entry to scrub water, repeated displacement orders, residing in shelters underneath steady bombardment, and publicity to infections, illness, and harsh climate, the assaults on maternal and reproductive healthcare are one other piece of this puzzle. Collectively, these circumstances have been created to systematically destroy the material of life in Gaza and scale back the inhabitants’s capacity to outlive,” stated Bakri.
“The Israeli authorities has justified assaults on healthcare amenities by saying this was an issue brought on by Hamas. We haven’t had a sign of this nevertheless it could be true. However in any case there must be an investigation of those incidents and we hope the Israeli authorities will perform such an investigation,” stated Zarifi.
“However what is admittedly alarming to us is that the norms prohibiting assaults on healthcare have been repeatedly violated, and there are additionally legal guidelines governing the safety of girls and kids that seem to have been violated. The one factor that makes these norms work is accountability. There must be accountability for what occurred, as it’s the solely manner we are able to be certain that what has occurred gained’t occur in different conflicts. Impunity is watched by different actors world wide,” he added.
IPS UN Bureau Report
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