The number one health issue in Palestine is the Israeli occupation

By Dr Javid AbdelmoneimInternational President of MSF.Published On 19 Jul 202619 Jul 2026SaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkAn injured child receives treatment at a hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on July 7, 2026, following an Israeli attack in the Mawasi area [Bashar Taleb/AFP]Across Palestine, the cumulative effect of Israel’s actions on the Palestinian population since October 7, 2023, is clear: They have eroded the ability for Palestinians to live a dignified, healthy life. This must be said clearly. Policies applied in the Gaza Strip and the trajectory observed in the occupied West Bank, point to the broader Israeli project of colonisation of Palestine through occupation.It’s been more than 1,000 days since Israel’s genocide in Gaza began, and the collective punishment of Palestinians continues to this day. Amid a so-called ceasefire, the world has normalised seeing Palestinians being maimed and killed daily in their tents, in hospitals and on the street.The word “ceasefire” has lost all meaning. As I write these lines, the number of casualties keeps growing, as does the disinterest towards the catastrophic situation in Gaza, the world’s most striking political failure in recent decades.June was the deadliest month since the ceasefire began in October. As of July 18, Israel has killed 1,144 Palestinians and injured 3,703 since the truce was announced, adding to the death toll since the start of the war, which has surpassed 73,200.Israel is expanding military control of the Strip with its “Yellow Line” continuing to shift westwards constantly. The expansion puts anyone who approaches the line – often while simply trying to reach their shelters, gather firewood or find food – at risk of being shot.But it is not just the violence. As the “Yellow Line” moves, it compresses more than two million people into just one-third of the Strip. This is not incidental. It produces conditions of extreme overcrowding where disease spreads easily and basic needs go unmet. We see the consequences in our clinics: respiratory infections, skin diseases and diarrhoeal illnesses, driven by the lack of clean water and sanitation and the inhumane living conditions.The West Bank has also undergone a profound violent transformation since October 7, 2023. The Israeli government, military and state-sponsored settlers have accelerated ethnic cleansing, land theft, dispossession, territorial fragmentation and economic strangulation, further eroding Palestinian presence and continuity.Palestinians are being hunted in their homes, schools and on their land while the attackers enjoy complete impunity. In Nablus and Hebron, we receive patients experiencing trauma and depression linked to the growing violence and movement restrictions, which impede every aspect of their lives, including getting to a hospital.Israel has continued to systematically obstruct access to healthcare in the West Bank and deliberately dismantled the healthcare system in Gaza.Healthcare workers, patients, ambulances and hospitals have all been targeted.On October 26, 2024, during a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, Dr Mohammed Obeid, a surgeon working for Doctors Without Borders (MSF), was arrested with 57 other people. He is one of more than 95 Palestinian healthcare workers who remain detained by Israeli forces. To this day, Obeid remains in an Israeli prison without charge. We continue to call for his unconditional and immediate release.The genocide has decimated the health system’s workforce in Gaza, and it will take years to replace. At least 1,700 healthcare staff have been killed since October 2023, including 15 of our own MSF team members. Nobody is safe in Gaza.The Palestinians’ access to healthcare has been further restricted since the Israeli authorities deregistered 37 humanitarian organisations in January. Israel is blocking us from bringing international staff and critically needed supplies into Gaza and the West Bank. While some humanitarian supplies have entered Gaza, they are not enough. These arbitrary restrictions are part of a longstanding, punitive Israeli policy towards the Palestinian people and the organisations that try to help them.Whether through direct violence, dismantling the healthcare system or obstructing humanitarian assistance, inducing famine, weaponising water, causing higher levels of prematurity and mortality among infants and high levels of miscarriage, or denying care, Israel is destroying Palestinian health. From where I am sitting, it’s clear: The number one health issue in Palestine is Israel’s occupation.Israel’s methods have become accepted. World leaders have normalised Israel’s conduct. Through political support, military aid or silence, they have enabled the continuation of its policies.The situation is intolerable. In Gaza, the genocide continues, and in the West Bank, ethnic cleansing accelerates.A drastic shift in policy is urgently needed, one that prioritises the dignity of Palestinians, the protection of civilians, ensures unimpeded humanitarian access and holds all governments accountable. Without that shift, the next 1,000 days will bring the continuation of the present devastating reality that will cost more Palestinian livesThe views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.