Gaza Herald – Gaza’s Civil Defense has appealed to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and international humanitarian organizations to urgently support the repair of emergency vehicles that have been out of service for 12 consecutive days, warning that the breakdown is severely hindering rescue operations and emergency response.
Nizar Al-Bardini, director of the Al-Rimal Civil Defense Center, said three essential emergency vehicles, including a fire engine, a rescue vehicle, and an ambulance, remain inoperable because repairs have become impossible amid soaring maintenance costs and severe shortages of spare parts and lubricants in local markets.
Al-Bardini warned that the continued loss of these vehicles is depriving thousands of residents and displaced Palestinians in western Gaza City of critical emergency services, delaying firefighting, rescue, and ambulance operations at a time of growing humanitarian needs.
He called on the United Nations and international humanitarian organizations to fulfill their responsibilities by urgently providing the support needed to restore the vehicles to service, enabling Civil Defense crews to continue saving lives, protecting civilians, and carrying out their humanitarian mission under the ongoing conditions in Gaza.
According to Al-Bardini, the prolonged shutdown of Al-Rimal Civil Defense Center’s fleet has left Al-Tuffah Civil Defense Center solely responsible for responding to emergency calls across Gaza Governorate, placing increasing operational pressure on its crews while expanding the area they must cover, further slowing emergency response times.
