WHO calls on occupation to end restrictions on medical supplies to Gaza

The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued an urgent appeal to lift restrictions on the entry of essential medicines and medical equipment into the Gaza Strip, emphasizing the need for these supplies to flow without any delay. This call comes amid a severe deterioration in the health system, as the international organization seeks to initiate large-scale reconstruction operations for medical services damaged by the blockade and ongoing aggression.

The Director-General of the organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, explained that international efforts recently succeeded in supporting the establishment of a new family health center in the northern areas of the Gaza Strip to compensate for the severe shortage in care. Ghebreyesus pointed out that residents of those areas suffer from extremely limited access to health services, making the presence of such centers an urgent necessity to deliver medical care directly to needy citizens.

The UN official affirmed in his statements that the scale of health needs throughout the Strip far exceeds current available capacities, requiring decisive international intervention. He stressed that the continued bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the occupation on the entry of essential medicines hinder life-saving efforts, calling for the opening of humanitarian corridors and ensuring free access to all areas of Gaza without restrictions.

Through these demands, the World Health Organization seeks to end the suffering of thousands of patients and injured individuals who lack the most basic elements of treatment due to the medical blockade. The organization considers that lifting restrictions is the first and essential step towards restoring the efficiency of hospitals and health centers, and ensuring the provision of curative and preventive services to the population facing harsh health and living conditions.

Health needs across Gaza are immense, and bureaucratic obstacles to essential medicines must be removed.