GENEVA: More people could die from disease than from bombings in the Gaza Strip if its health system is not repaired, a World Health Organization spokesperson said on Tuesday (Nov 28).
Gaza health authorities deemed reliable by the United Nations say more than 15,000 people have been confirmed killed in Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, around 40 per cent of them children, with many more dead feared to be lost under rubble.
Israel has sworn to annihilate Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, after its gunmen burst across the fence and killed around 1,200 people and seized 240 captives on Oct 7.
“Eventually we will see more people dying from disease than we are even seeing from the bombardment if we are not able to put back (together) this health system,” said the WHO’s Margaret Harris at a UN briefing in Geneva.
She repeated concerns about a rise in outbreaks of infectious diseases, particularly diarrhoeal diseases.
Citing a UN report on the living conditions of displaced residents in northern Gaza, she said: “(There are) no medicines, no vaccination activities, no access to safe water and hygiene and no food. We saw a very high number of cases of diarrhoea among infants,” she said.
Source: CNA
