Gaza hospitals ill-equipped for Israeli onslaught

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Gaza hospitals fear an expanded Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, which would increase the burden on them in providing health services and relief to citizens, in light of the severe shortage of various categories of medicine, medical supplies and fuel.

Gaza suffers from a lack of dozens of categories of important medicine and medical supplies, which have completely run out in storehouses. There is also a severe shortage of fuel imports needed to operate ambulances to transport the injured to hospitals and to operate power generators. The latter serve as an alternative to the electricity supply, which undergoes cuts of up to 12 hours a day, according to Ashraf al-Qadra, director of information at the Gaza Ministry of Health.

Speaking to Al-Monitor, Qadra said the fuel shortage crisis had reached the point that the ministry lacks 75% of its fuel requirements, which has halted 50% of ambulance capacity at the Ministry of Health. This threatens to increase in the number of dead and wounded should Israel expand its assault on the Strip.

In the last two weeks, Israeli warplanes have made dozens of airstrikes against various areas in Gaza's provinces. Qadra said these raids have led to the deaths of 68 people and wounded more than 500 since the start of the conflict. He said the injured were still arriving at the Strip's hospitals with the continued Israeli escalation.