Gaza's largest partially functioning hospital on verge of closure, warns MAP

Gaza's largest partially functioning hospital is on the verge of closure due to Israeli blocks on fuel deliveries, threatening the lives of critically ill patients, including children and newborns in intensive care.

Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) said Nasser Hospital was already rationing fuel and prioritising power for operating theatres and paediatric and neonatal intensive care units.

The hospital requires 5,500 litres of fuel daily to operate at its necessary capacity, but restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities only permit 15,000 litres of fuel every three days and have prohibited the refilling of the hospital's main or reserve fuel tanks.

"The situation is critical. Without additional fuel, this hospital will shut down in less than 48 hours, leaving critically ill patients – children in ventilators, newborns in incubators, and others in need of urgent care – facing imminent death," said Mohammed Aghaalkurdi, MAP's medical programme lead in Gaza.

"We are running out of time. Power cuts are already disrupting care and we are forced to prioritise only the most crucial areas while the rest of the hospital falls into darkness. The entry of fuel is a matter of life and death."