The director of Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza, Mohammed Abu Salmiya, has raised alarm over a new virus spreading across the Strip, warning that it poses a serious threat to an already strained population. Symptoms reported include fever, joint pain, runny nose, persistent cough, and prolonged diarrhoea, yet medical staff lack the tests needed to identify the cause.

Abu Salmiya attributed the outbreak to weakened immunity caused by widespread malnutrition, limited access to clean water, insufficient hygiene supplies, and severe overcrowding in tents for displaced families. He stressed that the virus is compounding the pressures on Gaza’s health system, which has been under sustained strain due to the blockade and the destruction of medical infrastructure.

For more than 23 months, Gaza’s healthcare system has faced systematic disruption, with shortages of medicines, equipment, power generators, and infant formula. UNRWA recently warned that vital medical supplies are nearly depleted, highlighting the growing risk of a humanitarian catastrophe as the blockade imposed since March 2 continues. The combination of war, siege, and disease underscores the urgent need for international intervention to protect the health and lives of Gaza’s residents.