Gaza Herald – Gaza’s hospitals are facing the imminent collapse of their oxygen supply system, putting critically ill patients and life-saving medical departments at severe risk as Israel’s restrictions on the entry of equipment, spare parts and essential supplies continue to cripple the Strip’s devastated healthcare system.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health warned Saturday that the remaining oxygen plants have been pushed beyond their operational limits, with repeated technical failures increasing while engineering teams remain unable to carry out essential emergency maintenance.
Only 12 of Gaza’s 34 oxygen-generation plants remain operational, according to the ministry. The facilities that are still functioning are operating under severe technical and mechanical strain and are unable to meet the growing needs of hospitals and healthcare providers.
The crisis extends to oxygen cylinder filling capacity. Only four of 30 cylinder-filling machines remain operational, leaving the system vulnerable to a sudden and potentially catastrophic shutdown.
Oxygen is essential for intensive-care units, emergency departments, operating rooms and other life-saving services, as well as for patients who depend on medical oxygen while receiving care at home.
The ministry called for the immediate opening of Gaza’s crossings to allow spare parts, technical equipment and other urgently needed supplies to enter the Strip. It also called for emergency deliveries of new oxygen-generation plants to prevent a potentially devastating health catastrophe.
The warning comes as Gaza’s healthcare system continues to operate under extraordinary pressure after years of Israeli bombardment and the destruction of medical infrastructure.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said 47% of essential medicines and 87% of laboratory-testing supplies have reached zero stock, while 59% of medical consumables are completely depleted. Hospitals are also operating at more than 130% occupancy, placing additional pressure on already damaged facilities and exhausted medical teams.
The collapse of oxygen infrastructure is unfolding alongside the continued loss of hospital capacity. Twenty-six of Gaza’s 38 hospitals are reportedly out of service, further limiting access to emergency and specialized care for Palestinians wounded or made ill by the ongoing humanitarian crisis.
For Gaza’s patients, the oxygen shortage is not simply another supply-chain problem. It is a direct threat to survival. With hospitals already operating far beyond capacity, even a temporary interruption could place critically ill patients at immediate risk.
The Palestinian Health Ministry is urging urgent international action to restore the medical supply chain and ensure that essential equipment, fuel, spare parts and oxygen systems can reach Gaza without delay.
