Gaza’s largest hospital has issued a stark warning over the escalating health crisis caused by the ongoing closure of border crossings. Dr. Mohammad Abu Salmiya, Director of Al-Shifa Medical Complex, stressed that thousands of patients are at immediate risk, with fatalities expected to rise sharply unless urgent access for medical treatment is granted.

Al-Shifa reports that 2,000 patients who have undergone amputations and over 5,000 cancer patients urgently require care outside the Strip. In addition, more than 3,000 people have lost their sight and over 1,000 their hearing, all needing critical surgical interventions unavailable under the blockade. Already, deaths among kidney and chronic disease patients have been recorded due to the lack of essential equipment and medicines. Dr. Abu Salmiya described the situation as a “war of extermination against patients,” highlighting the devastating human cost of restricted access to healthcare.

The hospital director called on the international community and humanitarian organisations to act immediately to open the crossings and facilitate medical evacuations. He warned that Gaza’s healthcare system is collapsing, and lives are being lost daily, leaving vulnerable patients trapped in a humanitarian crisis that grows more severe by the hour.