The ongoing Israeli blockade and military offensive on Gaza have created life-threatening conditions for pregnant women and newborns, Human Rights Watch (HRW) revealed in a damning report.
The 50-page report, titled “‘Five Babies in One Incubator’: Violations of Pregnant Women’s Rights Amid Israel’s Assault on Gaza,” documents severe violations of maternal and newborn health rights as healthcare systems collapse under Israeli attacks and restrictions.Â
The Israeli government’s siege, compounded by its bombardment of healthcare facilities, has left pregnant women and their babies in perilous conditions, with inadequate medical care, food, and water.
“Since the start of the hostilities in Gaza, women and girls are going through pregnancy lacking basic health care, sanitation, water, and food,” said Belkis Wille, associate crisis, conflict, and arms director at HRW. “They and their newborns are at constant risk of preventable death.”
‘Most babies in Gaza don’t survive’
As of January 2025, HRW estimates that emergency obstetric and newborn care is available in only seven of the 18 partially functioning hospitals in Gaza. This is a steep decline from the 20 hospitals operating before the escalation of violence in October 2023.
The blockade has also obstructed humanitarian aid, leaving medical facilities critically short of medicine, vaccines, and other essentials.Â
The report draws from interviews conducted with 17 individuals, including Palestinian women who experienced pregnancy during the assault, Gaza-based medical professionals, and international humanitarian workers.
Testimonies reported overcrowded, unsanitary hospitals where pregnant women are discharged hours after giving birth to make room for war casualties.Â
One doctor described the dire shortage of incubators at a maternity hospital in Rafah: “We have to put four or five babies in one incubator. Most of them don’t survive.”
UNICEF has reported eight infant deaths from hypothermia since late December due to inadequate shelter and freezing winter temperatures.Â
The impact of Israel’s blockade on maternal nutrition has also been catastrophic. Pregnant women, deprived of food and water, face higher risks of miscarriage, anaemia, and life-threatening conditions like eclampsia.
Miscarriages increase by 300%
A July 2024 report by maternity health experts revealed a staggering 300% increase in miscarriages in Gaza since October 2023.Â
The humanitarian crisis has been further exacerbated by two new Israeli laws, which take effect this month, barring the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from operating in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem.
UNRWA has been ordered to cease all operations in these areas, cutting off hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from vital food, water, and healthcare services.Â
Israeli attacks have forcibly displaced over 90 per cent of Gaza’s population, making it nearly impossible for women to access the few remaining healthcare services.
“The displacement and destruction have left pregnant women and newborns unable to find even basic follow-up or postnatal care,” Wille added.Â
Despite a recent ceasefire agreement that allowed limited humanitarian aid into Gaza, HRW warns that the dire situation for pregnant women and newborns persists.
“The ceasefire alone won’t end these horrific conditions,” Wille added. “Governments must press Israel to ensure that the needs of pregnant women, newborns, and others requiring health care are met.”
Wille also called on Israel’s allies, including the United States and European Union, to hold the Israeli forces accountable, review military and trade agreements, and support UNRWA’s continued operations in Gaza.Â
“Israeli authorities’ blatant and repeated violations of international law have had a particularly acute impact on pregnant women, girls, and newborns,” Wille said. “
This is not just a humanitarian crisis; it is a legal and moral failure on a global scale.”
