Gaza hospitals: how many are still functioning?

How many hospitals are left in Gaza?

WHO counts 36 hospitals in Gaza. On 24 September 2026, the WHO Director-General told a UN General Assembly side event that "only 19 of Gaza's 36 hospitals are functioning even partially, and none fully functioning."

That picture has barely moved all year. In its 5 February 2026 update, UNICEF reported that no hospital was fully functional and 50% (18 of 36) were partially functional. In May 2026, WHO's representative in the occupied Palestinian territory, Dr Renee Van de Weerdt, told reporters that barely half of hospitals were "partially functional" and that not a single one could be considered fully operational.

Primary care is in a similar state. As of February 2026, UNICEF reported that only 1.5% of primary healthcare centres (3 of 200) were fully functional and 46.5% (93 of 200) were partially functional.

What "partially functional" means

A partially functional hospital is open, but cannot offer its full range of services. Some departments may be closed, equipment may be broken or missing, and staff may be working without the medicines or tests they need. In practice, WHO says, that has meant:

• Patients with cancer who cannot receive treatment.
• People with kidney disease who cannot get regular dialysis.
• Mothers and newborns at greater risk because facilities lack medicines, equipment and specialist staff.
• Thousands of people with amputations and life-long injuries, only a small proportion of whom have received prosthetic services.

Why Gaza's hospitals can't fully reopen

In May 2026, WHO said the key reason health facilities were not functioning was critical shortages of medical supplies. Some items are held at the border under Israeli "dual-use" rules, which apply to goods considered to have potential military uses; WHO named laboratory equipment, reagents, oxygen concentrators and orthopaedic items, and said a prefabricated hospital had been waiting in Jordan for months to enter Gaza. UNICEF reported in February that respirators, ventilators and incubators faced entry restrictions too.

Power is the other constraint. OCHA reported in September 2026 that the electricity grid was down and that dozens of critical health services depended on back-up generators. On 17 September the UN Humanitarian Coordinator allocated US$2 million to buy $500,000 of fuel a month for four months for those services, and on 18 September Qatar announced a grant of 1.5 million litres of fuel for health and other vital infrastructure. OCHA called this a stop-gap and said approvals to import solar equipment and restart the Gaza Power Plant were urgently needed.

Transport is breaking down as well. Shortages of engine oil, tyres and spare parts for UN and NGO vehicles, including ambulances, led to the suspension of staff transport. As a result, the Ministry of Health and its partners said they would shift to emergency operating modalities from 16 September 2026, prioritising lifesaving and emergency care and reducing routine services.

How people are getting health care

Much of the day-to-day care happens outside hospitals, at clinics and other health sites. Between 14 and 20 September 2026, OCHA reported 279,419 health consultations across 215 active reporting locations in Gaza. Acute respiratory infections were the most common reportable condition (52%), followed by skin infections (28%) and acute watery diarrhoea (20%) (OCHA, 25 September 2026).

UNRWA remains one of the main health providers. WHO said in September 2026 that the agency has more than 1,000 staff delivering 10,000 consultations a day, and warned that restrictions on UNRWA and humanitarian NGOs risk further undermining health services.

Health workers have paid a heavy price. WHO counted at least 920 attacks on health facilities and staff since 2023, with over 1,700 health workers killed.

For patients who need treatment that Gaza's hospitals can't provide, the remaining option is evacuation abroad. Our guide to Gaza medical evacuations explains how that works.

Why living conditions matter for health

Hospitals are only part of the picture. WHO said in September 2026 that most people are living in overcrowded conditions with inadequate shelter, water and sanitation, which raises the risk of disease outbreaks, and that cases of acute watery diarrhoea had risen sharply. Clean water, food and weatherproof shelter prevent many of the illnesses that would otherwise end up at an overstretched clinic. See Gaza water aid, Gaza food aid and how many people are displaced in Gaza.