With more than two million people forced to live in extremely overcrowded conditions in an area comprising less than half the territory, maintaining hygiene is near impossible, and cases of rat bites, infections and illnesses are rising. Documented cases of skin diseases, including scabies and chickenpox, tripled between January and March alone, according to UNRWA.
Faten Abu Shamaleh, a Project Coordinator at WEFAQ Society for Women and Child Care, a partner of ActionAid’s, sent the following voicenote from Gaza on the situation: “The spread of rats, stray cats and insects has worsened, making it nearly impossible to maintain hygiene. Skin diseases are increasingly spreading among children and the elderly, who are the most vulnerable.
“With the shortage of cleaning supplies and the restriction on the entry of pesticides, many women rely on simple, natural alternatives such as vinegar and basic household salt to disinfect and safeguard their children, despite their limited effectiveness.
“For many women, especially mothers, the fear is constant – fear for their children’s health, fear of diseases and fear of not being able to provide a clean and safe home. Basic hygiene has become a luxury. The situation is further worsened by restrictions imposed by the occupying authority, [the] IDF.”
Riham Jafari, Communications and Advocacy Coordinator at ActionAid Palestine, said: “Children in Gaza are being bitten by rats in their sleep because families are being forced to live among rubble, sewage, uncollected waste and collapsing sanitation systems. These are not natural conditions – they are the consequences of destruction, displacement and the denial of safe living conditions to civilians.”
ActionAid is warning that, with temperatures reaching as high as 28C in May and with the summer months approaching, conditions are likely to worsen severely unless urgent action is taken.
With almost 90 per cent of Gaza’s water and sanitation infrastructure destroyed or damaged as a result of attacks by the Israeli military, according to analysis by MSF, reconstruction materials to repair systems are desperately needed. But restrictions imposed by the Israeli authorities on the entry of engine oil, spare parts and rubble-removal machinery, as reported by OCHA, are preventing vital work from taking place and hindering the delivery of services.
ActionAid is demanding that all restrictions on essential items entering Gaza are lifted immediately, and that humanitarian aid is permitted to enter unhindered and at scale before the health situation spirals any further out of control.
Faten continued: “The crisis is not just about discomfort, it’s about dignity, health and survival. Women are carrying the burden silently managing households under extreme conditions, while dealing with stress, exhaustion and the emotional weight of seeing their living conditions deteriorate day by day.
“Behind every statistic, there is a woman trying with purpose to create a sense of safety in an environment that offers very little of it. Their resilience is undeniable, but resilience should not be a substitute for basic human needs.”
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Spokespeople are available for comment.
Please contact – Steph Wulf, Senior Communications Manager, ActionAid Australia
+61 (0)456 952 836