UN agency reports hepatitis outbreak in Gaza amid Israeli war

Nearly 40,000 cases of hepatitis recorded in Gaza since start of Israeli war, UNRWA says

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has reported an outbreak of hepatitis across the Gaza Strip amid relentless Israeli attacks on the enclave. In a Tuesday statement, the UNRWA said nearly 40,000 cases of hepatitis have been recorded in Gaza since the start of the Israeli war on Oct. 7, 2023. "800 to 1,000 new hepatitis cases are reported weekly from UNRWA health centers and shelters across Gaza," it added. "Desperate sanitary conditions facilitate the spread of diseases including Hepatitis A," UNRWA said. Israel has continued a devastating military campaign in the Gaza Strip since last Oct. 7 following a Hamas attack despite a UN Security resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire. During the offensive, hospitals were systematically targeted in Israeli attacks across the enclave where at least 39,400 people have been killed and nearly 91,000 others injured, according to local health authorities. Over nine months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine. Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.