Medicide in Gaza

Photo taken during the 72hr ceasefire between Hamas and Israel on 6th of August 2014. Destroyed ambulance in the Gaza Strip.
Boris Niehaus | CC BY-SA 4.0

➡️ MEDICIDE IN GAZA - In Solidarity with Doctors, Nurses and Medics in Gaza

Medicide in this context is used to describe the grave violation of human rights being carried out in Gaza to strip the population of healthcare, including vital infrastructure, medicines, and access to healthcare professionals. It is a crime against humanity.

Despite ongoing fear, insecurity, and risk to their own lives, health workers, national and international, persist in providing urgent care in Gaza.

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Israel's destruction of Gaza's health care system is a "critical tool of its ongoing genocide" - Francesca Albanese

A destroyed hospital in Gaza has half of its front wall missing, it is surrounded by rubble, the whole scene is grey and dusty. There is an old bus and some cars parked infront of it.
Jaber Jehad Badwan | CC BY-SA 4.0

Israel is committing medicide by destroying the healthcare system in Gaza as part of their genocidal campaign against the people of Palestine. It involves the systematic dismantling and crippling of medical infrastructure and services in a targeted region or community.

The bombing of hospitals, destruction of medical equipment, the assassination and persecution of medical professionals, and the deliberate withholding of medical supplies and resources aim to weaken and eventually eliminate access to essential healthcare - exacerbating suffering and increasing mortality rates.

Medicide not only inflicts immediate harm but also has long-term impacts on the health and survival of the citizens of Gaza. The few healthcare facilities which are still operational are struggling under severe supply shortages, lack of health workers, insecurity, and an overwhelming number of casualties. Healthcare professionals are working under impossible conditions.

Hospitals as Battlegrounds

Hospitals must never be militarised or targeted.

International Humanitarian Law states that health establishments must never be attacked. Article 8 of the Rome statute constitutes intentional attacks on hospitals and units where the sick and wounded are being treated as war crimes. Attacks against medical staff are also violations of international law.

It is of note that Israel is not a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

(MAP and WHO)

  • At least 94% of hospitals in the Gaza Strip are damaged or completely destroyed.

  • Military attacks by the IDF have forced a third of hospitals in Gaza to shut down completely.

  • More than half of all functioning health facilities are now in areas with forced displacement orders.

  • WHO has recorded 697 direct attacks on healthcare since the beginning of the war on Gaza.

  • Severe medical supply shortages mean that 47% of hospital medications, 70% of primary care medications, and all treatments for chronic diseases are currently unavailable.

  • Critical infrastructure, which supplies clean water, electricity, and sanitation, has been severely impacted in every part of Gaza.

  • The injured are unable to reach functioning hospitals as ambulance services have been obliterated.

  • North Gaza has been stripped of nearly all health care.

Gaza protest in San Francisco. A woman is holding a large black sign which has a gencoide checklist. Underneath is says 'Let Gaza Live.'
Flickr | Steve Rhodes

Medics Killed & Detained

Working in horrific conditions, with a severe shortage of supplies and overwhelmed with the sheer number of patients, medical teams in Gaza are beyond breaking point.

As of July 2025, at least 1,617 healthcare workers have now been killed in Gaza whilst attempting to provide care for the severely injured and sick. There are currently 180 medical professionals who have been arbitrarily detained in Israel. Here they are subjected to physical abuse and denied their basic human rights. On top of this there are 200 healthcare workers who were detained but have since been freed. (Institute for Palestine Studies)

With more than 2 million cases of infectious disease, more than 20,000 patients in need of evacuation abroad, and almost 50% of essential medicines at zero stock, doctors, nurses, and paramedics are working tirelessly to fight a losing battle.

Health Crisis In Gaza

(British Red Cross)

  • The number of people facing starvation in Gaza is 470,000 - 22% of the population.

  • In Gaza, far more than 57,000 people have lost their lives, and at least 118,000 have been injured as a result of the war.

  • More than two million Palestinians, half of which are children, do not have access to sufficient water, food, or medical care.

  • Over 90% of homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. The majority of Palestinians live without a permanent, safe or clean place to live.

  • Gaza's entire population is currently reliant on humanitarian relief.

  • More than one million Palestinians are experiencing emergency levels of food insecurity. Severe malnutrition and disease are rife.

A History of Medicide in Gaza

Israel's weaponisation of healthcare in Gaza is nothing new. Between 2008 and 2023, there were 5 periods of prolonged conflict. During each cycle of violence, healthcare services in Gaza were intentionally struck, each time further weakening the already crippled healthcare system.

  • The 2008 – 09 attack saw the damage and destruction of 58 hospitals and clinics and 29 ambulances. Sixteen medical workers were killed, and 25 were injured.

  • In the 2012 violence, 16 hospitals and clinics were damaged or destroyed, as well as six ambulances. Three medical workers were injured.

  • In 2014, 73 hospitals and clinics, as well as 45 ambulances, were damaged or destroyed. Twenty-three medical workers were killed, and 76 were injured.

  • In 2021, 33 healthcare centres were damaged or destroyed, including Gaza's main Covid-19 laboratory. At least two doctors were killed.

In total, between December 2008 and May 2021, 180 strikes were carried out by Israel against hospitals, medical clinics and ambulances in the Gaza Strip.

Gaza is now at risk of total medical shutdown.

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Author: Dr N. Stute, MD and Rachael Mellor 04.07.25 (Updated 07.07.25) licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0