Attachments
Situation Update
Gaza Strip
Health updates • Ongoing hostilities across the Gaza Strip—including operations in North Gaza, mass evacuation orders, and attacks on healthcare facilities—continue to severely restrict healthcare services and jeopardize the right to health for 2.1 million Palestinians in the Strip.
• Between 1 and 6 January 2025, WHO recorded 10 attacks on healthcare in the Gaza Strip, all in North Gaza. Eight incidents impacted Al-Awda Jabalia Hospital, while two targeted the Indonesian Hospital.
• The Ministry of Health reported eight deaths from hypothermia, including seven infants. To prevent further fatalities, efforts are focused on reducing exposure risks through social and behavior change communication campaigns to educate parents and caregivers on hypothermia prevention and management, alongside procurement of essential supplies like thermal blankets and hot water bags.
• On 31 December 2024, WHO facilitated the evacuation of 55 patients, including 38 children, and 72 companions to the UAE. On 8 January 2025, 10 patients and their companions were evacuated to Jordan for specialized care. Since the Rafah Crossing closure in May 2024, medical evacuations from Gaza have been severely restricted, with only 446 patients evacuated. As of 8 January 2025, a total of 5,393 patients, 92% of whom are children, have been evacuated since 7 October 2023.
• Persistent fuel shortages continue to threaten humanitarian interventions, including healthcare provision, impacting the operations of hospitals, PHCCs and ambulance services, and forcing partners and health facilities to ration the limited supplies available.
Malnutrition
• From 1 January to 31 December 2024, the Nutrition Cluster reported that 657,008 children aged 6-59 months were screened for malnutrition. Of these, 39,341 (6.3%) were admitted to the Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) Program for treatment, including 7,675 (1.2%) with severe acute malnutrition (SAM) and 31,666 (4.8%) with moderate acute malnutrition (MAM)
• Four SAM stabilization centers (SC) are currently operational across the Gaza Strip: Patients Friends Benevolent Society Hospital in Gaza City (10 beds), IMC Deir Al-Balah FH SC (10 beds), Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis (6 beds), and Al-Awda Nusseirat Hospital in Deir Al-Balah (10 beds). The SAM SC at Kamal Adwan Hospital, serving the North Gaza governorate, remains out of service due to the ongoing security situation.
• In 2024, a total of 456 SAM patients with complications were admitted to SCs, along with six new cases during the first week of 2025.