WHO warns of rising trend of communicable disease in UN shelters in Gaza

The World Health Organisation (WHO), on Tuesday, said that there is a rising trend in communicable disease notifications in UN shelters in Gaza, citing data from the UN Palestinian Refugee Agency, or UNRWA, Anadolu Agency reports.

According to the Agency, over 1.1 million are taking shelter in UNRWA facilities.

Data indicates a “massive increase” in some communicable diseases like diarrhoea, acute respiratory infection, skin infections and hygiene-related conditions like lice

WHO spokesperson, Margaret Harris, told a UN press briefing.

Harris pointed to a 45-fold increase in diarrhoea and a 14-fold climb in bloody diarrhoea in comparison to 2022.

Unfavourable shelter conditions, like overcrowding with shortages of water, food and fuel are the main factors of this massive rise in communicable diseases, she said.

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She noted that, on Friday, the WHO carried out an assessment mission to UNRWA shelters in northern Gaza and noted

the lack of waste collection around the shelters, the extremely limited access to medical consultations, no medicines, no vaccination activities, no access to safe water and hygiene and no food

“A very high number of cases of diarrhoea among infants have been reported, with no treatment available for them,” she said, adding that patients suffering from chronic conditions lack access to the critical drugs they need.

The spokesperson also said there are 350,000 people living with non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer and hypertension.

Harris said there are 50,000 pregnant women in the Strip with 5,500 expected to deliver in the next month, and an average of 183 births per day. Twenty of these babies will be born needing specialised care, she said.

While almost three-quarters of hospitals in Gaza (26 of 36) and two outpatient specialty centres (Al Yaman Al Said and Musalam Eye Centre) and 65 per cent of primary health care clinics (47 of 72) have shut down due to damage from hostilities or lack of fuel, she said hospitals in northern Gaza are almost entirely shut down.

She added that only two small Health Ministry-run hospitals are currently functioning in northern Gaza, able to receive patients, but with extremely limited capacity.

Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on 7 October.

It has since killed over 15,000 people, including 6,150 children and 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

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