Gaza: As World Health Day is commemorated globally on April 7, the occasion also marks the launch of a year-long campaign focusing on maternal and newborn health titled "Healthy Beginnings, Hopeful Futures." However, the celebrations are overshadowed by the dire health crisis unfolding in the Gaza Strip, where the healthcare system teeters on the brink of collapse. Severe malnutrition and a lack of access to healthcare are putting mothers and their unborn children in grave danger.
According to Kuwait News Agency, World Health Organization (WHO) spokesperson Margaret Harris described the health conditions for pregnant women in Gaza as dire. "When a pregnant woman is suffering from acute malnutrition, the fetus often fails to develop properly," Harris stated. This situation can lead to intrauterine growth restriction, increasing the risk of miscarriage, premature birth, or babies being born full-term but severely underweight due to prolonged hunger. Harris added that babies born under such circumstances often face an uncertain road to recovery.
WHO estimates indicate that there are more than 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza, with around 5,500 expected to give birth next month. Approximately 1,400 will require cesarean sections at a time when hospitals and healthcare facilities have been largely destroyed, and essential services are critically lacking. According to WHO, one in four pregnant women in Gaza is experiencing severe complications, with around 25 percent suffering from acute anemia and 23 percent facing the threat of preterm labor.
The widespread food shortages have also affected breastfeeding women, with 99 percent struggling to produce milk, while half a million women and girls of reproductive age lack access to basic prenatal and postnatal care. Harris reported that 90 percent of pregnant and lactating women are enduring extreme food insecurity due to the ongoing blockade, soaring food prices, and lack of nutritional variety. Of over 100,000 children in Gaza, nearly 3 percent require treatment for severe acute malnutrition, with more than 60,000 cases reported among children aged 6 to 59 months. Additionally, 16,500 pregnant and lactating women need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition.
Harris expressed serious concerns over WHO's ability to respond to the crisis following the U.S. government's decision to cut funding, which previously accounted for about 30 percent of funding for the health cluster. "This year has already seen a dramatic shortfall, with 47 million dollars lost, representing 43 percent of the resources that should have been in operation by now." She warned that if health programs are cut, one million people in Gaza and the West Bank could be left without access to critical services, placing them at risk within an already collapsing health system.
Chris Sidoti, the Commissioner of the UN Human Rights Council's Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem and Israel, confirmed that life for mothers and children has become almost impossible due to the conditions in Gaza. He noted the systematic destruction of healthcare infrastructure by Israeli forces, including the targeted destruction of specialized maternity care centers. Sidoti emphasized that these actions are part of a systematic policy to destroy medical infrastructure, representing a threat to the survival of Palestinians as a group.
The UN commission of inquiry revealed that reproductive and sexual violence is being used systematically against both women and detained Palestinian men, many of whom have suffered torture targeting their reproductive organs. This practice carries long-lasting impacts on victims' health and fertility.
On the global stage, a new UN report co-authored by WHO showed a 40 percent reduction in maternal mortality between 2000 and 2023, largely due to improved access to essential health services. However, the report also warned of a sharp slowdown in progress since 2016, with an estimated 260,000 women dying during and following pregnancy and childbirth in 2023. Most maternal deaths occurred in low and lower middle-income countries and could have been prevented. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus commented on the findings, highlighting the dangers of pregnancy in many parts of the world despite existing solutions.