Gaza Aid Sites Turn Deadly as Hospitals Reach Breaking Point
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza — Gaza’s health system is collapsing. Patients injured while trying to reach food are flooding hospitals, and most medical facilities can no longer cope. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed Tuesday that hospitals are overwhelmed, aid access is shrinking, and the Strip’s largest referral hospital is barely functioning.
Dr. Thanos Gargavanis, WHO emergency officer, warned from inside Gaza, “We are walking the fine gray line between operational capacity and full disaster, every day.”
The warning followed reports that more Palestinians were killed Tuesday morning near a food distribution point in Khan Younis. The event left hundreds wounded and overran the Nasser Medical Complex, the main hospital in the area, according to Dr. Rik Peeperkorn of WHO.
Medical System in Freefall
Israel’s evacuation orders now cover over 80% of Gaza. Most of the population has been displaced. Nasser Medical Complex lies within one of the declared evacuation zones. The nearby Al-Amal Hospital, run by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, has stopped admitting new patients due to ongoing military activity.
“It is what we call a completely minimal functional hospital,” Dr. Peeperkorn said. Only 17 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are partially operational. No fuel has entered Gaza in over 100 days, and medical supplies are running out.
Food Access Turns Fatal
This week marked a sharp rise in deadly incidents near aid sites. On Monday, the Red Cross Field Hospital in Al Mawasi received over 200 injured people, the highest number from a single aid-related incident. WHO confirmed 28 of them were pronounced dead.
One day earlier, 170 injured civilians were taken to the same facility after trying to reach another food point. “The recent food distribution initiatives by non-UN actors every time result in mass casualty incidents,” Dr. Gargavanis stated.
WHO said the injuries mostly include gunshot wounds, with fewer cases involving shrapnel. Dr. Gargavanis clarified, “We’re not a forensic agency… What we can say, though, is that we’re talking of gunshot wound injuries.”
New Aid Model Under Fire
Since late May, the UN has been excluded from direct aid distribution in Gaza. A new system, backed by Israel and the United States, now uses private contractors under the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
WHO has reported a “constant correlation” between the locations of these private food distribution points and the rise in mass casualty events in Khan Younis, Rafah, and near the Netzarim corridor.
The UN has warned repeatedly that this system does not meet humanitarian principles. It has called for the full removal of restrictions blocking aid.
Relief Delayed at Gaza’s Edge
WHO stated that 33 of its supply trucks are stuck at Al Arish in Egypt, waiting for clearance to enter Gaza. Another 15 trucks are stalled in the West Bank.
“We must be allowed to move supplies into Gaza through all possible routes,” Dr. Peeperkorn said. Without immediate access, more hospitals will shut down, leaving patients with no care.
As the crisis deepens, aid groups face increasing barriers. Civilians searching for food now risk being shot or trampled. Hospitals, without fuel or supplies, can no longer provide basic care.
The situation, as described by WHO staff inside Gaza, is on the edge of total collapse.
