Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli drone strikes town of Harouf, Nabatieh district.
Factions' statement: The attendees agreed to support and continue implementing the ceasefire agreement measures, including the withdrawal of the occupation and lifting the siege.
Factions' statement: Calling for an end to all forms of torture and violations against prisoners in occupation prisons and the necessity of obligating the occupation to do so.
Statement: The current moment is crucial, making the meeting a true turning point toward national unity in defense of our people and their right to life, dignity, and freedom.
Factions' statement: Call for an urgent meeting of all Palestinian forces and factions to agree on a national strategy.
Factions' statement: Continuing joint work to unify visions and positions to confront the challenges facing the Palestinian cause.
Statement of the factions: Emphasis on the unity of the Palestinian political system and the independent national decision.
Statement: Approval to establish an international committee to oversee the financing and implementation of the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
Statement: The committee is responsible for managing life and services in cooperation with Arab brothers and international institutions, based on transparency and accountability.
Resistance factions' statement: Agreement to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a temporary Palestinian committee of independent technocrats.

Gaza doctor warns of deadly meningitis surge amid healthcare collapse

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Al Mayadeen
  • 1 Jul 2025 18:02
5 Min Read

The head of the Pediatric Department at Al-Rantisi Hospital in Gaza describes a horrific health situation in Gaza that is only getting worse by the day.

Listen
  • x
  • Gaza doctor warns of deadly meningitis surge amid healthcare collapse
    A nurse feeds a prematurely born baby lying in an incubator at the neonatal intensive care unit of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, June 19, 2025 (AP)

Palestinian children in Gaza are dying from hunger and malnutrition, revealed the head of the Pediatric Department at Al-Rantisi Hospital, Dr. Sharif Matar, noting that families are bringing their children to the hospital due to the lack of milk.

Speaking to Al Mayadeen about the dire state of the health system in Gaza amid the ongoing genocide war, Dr. Matar emphasized the lack of any means to combat or contain the spread of epidemics. He announced recording numerous cases of meningitis, amid a collapsed health sector and healthcare systems, the contamination of water networks, and a lack of fuel.

The Gaza pediatrician told Al Mayadeen that the health conditions in Gaza are worsening, describing them as "catastrophic and far more miserable than anyone can imagine," lamenting how “apparently, no one in the world cares anymore.”

Healthcare in the time of genocide. Inside "Israel's" systematic assault on #Gaza's health workers and facilities in numbers. pic.twitter.com/m9XyG7yprT

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 7, 2025

Ending war only solution

He underscored that the only solution is to end the war, as people in Gaza are risking their lives for a loaf of bread, coming under direct Israeli fire as they wait for aid.

Through Al Mayadeen, Dr. Matar called on the United Nations to fulfill its responsibilities regarding the ongoing bloodshed in Gaza.

In this context, Hamas warned that the increasing rate of meningitis among children, as hundreds of cases are recorded in the strip, signals a looming catastrophe threatening Gaza’s children.

The #Palestinian Ministry of Health in #Gaza has issued an urgent appeal to replenish medicine stocks in hospitals and primary care centers, warning that #Gaza's healthcare system is on the brink of collapse.

According to the ministry, 37% of essential medicines and 59% of… pic.twitter.com/FBBUJxZbLS

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) April 11, 2025

In a statement, the movement called on the international community, the United Nations, and its agencies, especially the World Health Organization, to “intervene immediately to save the children of Gaza.”

Related News

Rubio says UNRWA to play no role in Gaza aid deliveries

WHO warns of deepening Gaza health crisis, urges opening all crossings

Humanitarian conditions in Gaza continue to deteriorate amid ongoing Israeli aggression and blockade. The World Health Organization announced earlier that 112 children are admitted to Gaza hospitals daily due to malnutrition.

Rising death toll

This situation unravels amid a mounting death toll in the Strip amid relentless daily Israeli airstrikes and massacres in the region. 

Gaza hospitals received 116 martyrs, four of whom were recovered from under the rubble, and 463 injured victims in 24 hours, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health's report published on Tuesday.

With this, the death toll of the brutal Israeli war on Gaza rises to 56,657 martyrs and 134,105 injured since the launch of the war on October 7, while the total number of casualties since March 18, 2025, has reached 6,315 martyrs and 22,064 injuries

In addition, the Ministry of Health detailed that 600 Palestinians were martyred and over 4,278 were wounded while seeking aid since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operating in the Strip.

112 Palestinian children hospitalized every day: WHO

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 112 Palestinian children are being hospitalized every single day due to severe malnutrition, an outcome directly tied to "Israel's" siege and military onslaught. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the situation as having "surpassed catastrophic levels."

Gaza's hospitals, once the last line of defense against death by starvation, are now barely functional. Only 17 out of 36 medical facilities remain partially operational, and none are functioning at all in northern Gaza or in Rafah, two areas subjected to relentless Israeli bombing and forced displacement.

Dr. Tedros revealed that "at least 500 people have been killed while trying to access food at aid distribution points controlled by the US and Israel, which operate outside the United Nations system." He also stated that WHO had only limited access to Gaza this week, the first time since March, underscoring the systematic obstruction of humanitarian relief.

Infanticide in the making

On Thursday, two more Palestinian infants died due to malnutrition in Khan Younis after being denied baby formula and basic medical care. The children's families held funeral prayers after their bodies were transferred from Nasser Hospital.

Speaking to reporters, Mahmoud Sharab, the uncle of five-month-old Nidal, confirmed that "lack of food and the absence of baby formula" killed his nephew. He warned that other infants in the hospital remain at risk unless they receive therapeutic milk and urgent nutritional aid. Mohammed al-Hams, father of 10-day-old Kinda, said his daughter died "due to malnutrition and lack of medicine."

In a post published on social media platform X, Director General of Gaza's Ministry of Health, Muneer Alboursh, shared the story of three-month-old Jouri Mohsen Ismail al-Masri, who died that morning in the pediatric ward of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. "Jouri carried no weapon… She only cried from hunger," he wrote. "But she found no milk to ease her pain, nor arms to protect her innocence." Her death, he noted, marked the 66th child to die from malnutrition in Gaza since the war began. "Sixty-six little angels lost — not to bombs, but to silence, to starvation."

Read more: Reproductive violence used as genocide tool in Gaza: UN

  • Gaza Strip
  • Palestine
  • Meningitis
  • Israeli aggression
  • Israel
  • Gaza genocide
  • Israeli occupation
  • Gaza

Most Read

From previous scenes of the Qassam Brigades targeting an Israeli D9 bulldozer with a Yassin 105 shell, east of Deir al-Balah. (Military Media of the Qassam Brigades)

US knew fatal Rafah blast cause was not Hamas op., says journalist

  • Politics
  • 20 Oct 2025
'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

  • Technology
  • 24 Oct 2025
Abu Hamza, the spokesperson for the Al-Quds Brigades, during a speech televised on October 22, 2025 (Al-Quds Brigades Military Media)

Al-Quds Brigades' Abu Hamza mourns leaders, vows continued resistance

  • Politics
  • 22 Oct 2025
US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

  • Africa
  • 23 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Flags of Iran, Russia, and China (IRNA)
Politics

Russia, China, Iran send joint letter to IAEA on Resolution 2231 end

Rubio says UNRWA to play no role in Gaza aid deliveries
Politics

Rubio says UNRWA to play no role in Gaza aid deliveries

Tents are seen at UN school used as a shelter for displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis, Tuesday, September 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Politics

UN warns of 'lost generation' amid Gaza education crisis

x
Politics

White House pushes to repeal US sanctions on Syria: Report

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS