Gaza’s lifeline under fire as over 1,400 health workers killed in targeted attacks

Since Israel launched its military operation 19 months ago, more than 1,400 healthcare workers have been killed in Gaza, with hospitals bombed, ambulances struck, and medical staff intentionally targeted as the violence escalates.

Aid groups and UN officials warn that these attacks are not collateral damage but part of a deliberate strategy aimed at dismantling Gaza’s healthcare system, potentially amounting to war crimes.

According to Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), Israeli military strikes have caused one-third of Gaza's hospitals to completely shut down, and more than half of the remaining health facilities are located in areas under forced displacement orders.

Many hospital departments have been destroyed, and patients, including critically ill children, have been left without shelter and forced onto the streets. Healthcare workers, described as essential to Gaza’s survival, have been abducted, detained, and killed.

“MAP calls on the international community to take immediate action to protect Gaza’s healthcare workers. World leaders must act now to enforce an immediate and permanent ceasefire, an end to all arms sales to Israel, and full accountability for violations of international humanitarian law,” the organisation stated.

Dr Khaled Al-Shawa, a surgeon in Gaza, expressed his overwhelming sense of helplessness after 19 months of conflict: “We continue to watch patients die without being able to help. We live under constant threat, with nowhere safe to turn. As medical teams, we’ve lost many of our own, including my mother and several relatives.”

Immense danger

“The danger we face is immense. My message is clear that those of us who continue to care for patients must be protected. Our safety must be ensured, and the symbols identifying us as medical workers must be respected. This is vital, and urgent action is needed to safeguard healthcare workers,” he said.

MAP’s Director of Advocacy and Campaigns Rohan Talbot also condemned the ongoing violence, stating that despite international law protecting healthcare workers, Gaza’s medical staff are being erased.

He added that Gaza’s healthcare system is being systematically dismantled, leaving the population with little hope for survival.

He urged global leaders to take immediate action, warning that if they fail to stop these attacks, they will be complicit in the atrocities.

“Despite being protected under international law, Gaza’s healthcare workers are being erased before the world’s eyes. The evidence is overwhelming and the pattern is unmistakable: Gaza’s health system is being systematically dismantled, making it impossible to sustain Palestinian life in Gaza,” he stated.

“If world leaders refuse to act to stop this, they will be complicit in atrocities.”

Gaza blockade

Other Topics To Read

• Headlines
• Middle-East
• Israel
• Hamas
• Gaza
• Middle East
• Gaza's hospitals
• Medical Aid for Palestinians
• Gaza healthcare system
• Gaza’s lifeline under fire as over 1
• 400 health workers killed in targeted attacks

The situation is exacerbated by Israel’s continued blockade of Gaza, now in its 68th day. This blockade has cut off access to food, fuel, and essential medical supplies, further straining an already overburdened healthcare system.

Hospitals already facing severe shortages are in an increasingly catastrophic situation, with basic hygiene items like soap also in extremely limited supply across Gaza, including in hospitals. Each day without these supplies puts more lives at risk.

MAP reported that in March, Israeli forces killed Osama Al-Bali, a paramedic working at MAP’s Solidarity Polyclinic in Gaza, along with his wife and their 13-year-old son while they were sheltering in a tent.

MAP has called on the international community to take immediate action to protect Gaza’s healthcare workers. The organisation also stated that the UK must not support Israel’s actions, and the targeting of healthcare workers must not continue with impunity.