MSF warns restrictions on engine oil and spare parts entering Gaza threaten vital services

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has warned that restrictions on the entry of engine oil and spare parts into the Gaza Strip have worsened the energy crisis, threatening to disrupt hospitals, ambulances, water networks, aid transport and food production. 

In a statement released Tuesday, MSF reported that “The supply of engine oil is so limited that the price has increased 20 times in the last six months. By the end of July, it was more than US$1,300 per litre. Neither the quality nor the availability is guaranteed.” 

The organisation noted that most healthcare facilities in Gaza rely on generators for electricity amid disrupted power supplies and widespread damage to the electricity network. It warned that generator failures could halt vital medical services, particularly for patients dependent on life-support equipment.

MSF quoted Ola Bardawil, the organisation’s deputy project coordinator, as saying: “When generators break down, hospitals are at risk. Newborn babies in incubators, people who rely on oxygen generators, or those in need of lifesaving surgery will suffer.”  

READ: Gaza health official: Israeli delays caused deaths of 1,700 Palestinians seeking treatment abroad