A woman carries a child as smoke rises in the background in Gaza. Photo: Anadolu
Women and girls in the Gaza Strip are facing a worsening health and humanitarian crisis as the ongoing war continues to destroy healthcare infrastructure, disrupt treatment for serious illnesses and leave pregnant women without adequate medical care, according to a new report by Amnesty International.
The rights organisation said the prolonged conflict has forced many women into repeated displacement while access to reproductive healthcare, food, clean water and medicines has sharply deteriorated.
The report, based on interviews with displaced women, healthcare workers and humanitarian staff in February, describes how expectant mothers are struggling to give birth safely in overcrowded displacement camps where medical services and sanitation are limited.
Women interviewed across Gaza City, Al-Mawasi, Deir al-Balah and Nuseirat camp said they were struggling to obtain sufficient food, nutritional supplements and hygiene supplies during pregnancy.
Healthcare workers told Amnesty that many women arriving at hospitals show signs of malnutrition and anaemia, conditions linked to food shortages and poor living conditions in displacement shelters.
According to figures cited by the organisation from the World Health Organization, nearly 60 percent of healthcare service points in Gaza are no longer functioning, leaving only a limited number of facilities able to provide maternity and emergency obstetric care.
Doctors also reported shortages of essential medicines, including drugs used during labour, pain relief and treatments for infections, increasing the risk of complications during childbirth.
Humanitarian assessments indicate that around 37,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women in Gaza could face acute malnutrition requiring treatment later this year.
The collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system has also severely affected women suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer.
Hospitals are facing shortages of chemotherapy drugs and diagnostic equipment, making treatment increasingly difficult. Medical workers said the territory currently lacks radiation therapy services and functioning MRI machines needed to diagnose serious illnesses.
Patients have reported repeated interruptions to treatment as hospitals prioritise emergency trauma cases during periods of heavy fighting.
Amnesty also highlighted continued restrictions on medical evacuations for patients who require treatment unavailable inside Gaza.
More than 18,500 Palestinians are estimated to need urgent care outside the territory, but evacuations have remained limited since October 2023.
While some patients were transferred after the partial reopening of the Rafah crossing in February 2026, the organisation said bureaucratic delays and restrictions have slowed the process, leaving many critically ill patients waiting for treatment.
Despite the difficult conditions, Amnesty said women across Gaza continue to shoulder major responsibilities within their families and communities.
The organisation’s Secretary-General Agnès Callamard said women are playing vital roles as caregivers, health workers and teachers even while coping with displacement, illness and loss.
Amnesty called on governments to increase pressure to ensure humanitarian access to Gaza, facilitate medical evacuations and allow the entry of medicines and medical equipment needed to treat patients.
Without urgent action, the organisation warned, the continued collapse of healthcare services will place thousands of women and newborns at growing risk across the Gaza Strip.
This post was last modified on March 12, 2026 5:59 pm