Gaza’s al-Aqsa hospital at risk of collapse amid Israeli siege, aid restrictions

The Al-Aqsa hospital in central Gaza risks shutting down due to the breakdown of generators amid a continued Israeli siege on the territory.

The government hospital had previously been operating on two main generators that have since stopped working, forcing the medical centre, which serves more than one million people, to rely on a single, small backup generator.

The spokesperson for al-Aqsa hospital, Khalil al-Dakran, told The New Arab's sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the hospital risks being forced to halt operations due to the ongoing Israeli ban on bringing spare generator parts and fuel into the besieged Gaza Strip.

As a result, al-Dakran added, the medical staff at the hospital have begun rationing electricity and stop its supply to non-vital sections of the facility altogether to ensure the running of critical departments.

Al-Aqsa hospital hosts multiple intensive care, kidney and cardiac units, as well as operating rooms, emergency departments, and neonatal incubators.

It is also the only government hospital to remain functioning in central Gaza.

The single generator is not sufficient to cover the bare minimum needs of the hospital, al-Dakran told al-Araby al-Jadeed, adding that there was an ongoing crisis suffocating the operation of Gaza’s hospitals.

Under the ceasefire agreement reached in October 2025, 600 aid trucks should have entered Gaza daily to respond to the dire humanitarian conditions caused by two years of genocidal war.

Local authorities have said that only about 200 trucks carrying aid supplies enter the besieged territory daily, a third of the stipulated amount previously agreed upon by Israel.

Israel continues to impose a siege and stop the entry of fuel, despite UN officials suggesting critical operations in Gaza, including medical infrastructure, require a minimum of 1.9 million litres of fuel per week. This equates to roughly 270,000 litres per day as a minimum requirement.

Al-Dakran called Israel’s policy of allowing fuel into Gaza "drip-feeding", leaving hospitals under constant threat of closure.

The official also spoke of an acute shortage of medicines and medical supplies, adding that since the beginning of the war, Israel has allowed in less than 10% of the health system’s actual needs.

No new medical equipment has been permitted to enter Gaza, despite the large scale of destruction of medical facilities and hospitals because of Israel’s relentless bombardment during two years of war.

Despite most of Gaza’s hospitals going out of service during the war, many are unable to rebuild due to the continued ban of construction material from entering Gaza.