WHO warns Gaza health system on brink of collapse amid intensified Israeli operations

The World Health Organization (WHO) issued an urgent warning Wednesday about the critical state of the health care system in the Gaza Strip, with intensified Israeli ground operations and new evacuation orders pushing services "beyond the breaking point."

Hospitals and medical centers in northern and southern Gaza are under extreme pressure, with several already out of service due to hostilities and access restrictions, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote on X.

In northern Gaza, three hospitals -- the Indonesian Hospital, Kamal Adwan Hospital and Al-Awda Hospital -- along with three primary health care centers and four medical points, are located within the evacuation zones announced May 20.

An additional two hospitals, four health centers, and six medical points lie within 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) of those zones.

Tedros confirmed that the Kamal Adwan Hospital is now non-functional following nearby military activity and the resulting panic among patients and staff.

"No patients remain at the facility," he said.

The Indonesian Hospital remains inaccessible due to the continued presence of Israeli forces, he said, while in an attack Monday, the hospital's power generators were struck.

Al-Awda, the last functioning hospital in the north, is "overwhelmed and at risk of closure" due to worsening insecurity and lack of access, Tedros warned.

In southern Gaza, the situation is similar. The non-operational European Gaza Hospital, along with eight primary care centers and nine medical points, fall within the evacuation zones announced May 19.

Hospitals such as Nasser, Al-Amal and Al-Aqsa, along with one field hospital, five primary care centers and 17 medical points, are located within 1 kilometer of the evacuation zones.

Tedros underlined that even when hospitals are not directly hit or forced to evacuate, the hostilities and military presence severely hinder access for patients and health workers, while also obstructing WHO efforts to deliver critical supplies.

"This can quickly render health facilities non-functional," he said.

"We've seen this too many times, it must not be allowed to happen again," he added, urging the immediate protection of health care and a ceasefire.

"Hospitals must never be militarized or targeted," he said.