Women in Gaza have been devastatingly impacted by Israel’s military bombardment and total siege. This International Women’s Day, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) highlights the struggles that women and girls continue to face after a 15-month Israeli military assault and despite a fragile temporary ceasefire.
Israel’s illegal closure and blockade, compounded by repeated military assaults, degraded Gaza’s beleaguered healthcare system and its ability to provide adequate care to the population, prior to October 2023. This caused chronic shortages of medical supplies and equipment, particularly for contraception, maternal health, and emergency care, which has long undermined Palestinians’ rights to sexual and reproductive health.
Since the start of Israel’s latest military bombardment of Gaza in October 2023, women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights have been further undermined. Samaher Said, MAP’s Protection Mainstreaming Officer, said: “Every woman in Gaza has been forced to be strong. But in reality, none of us have been spared from the toll of this war.”
Direct attacks on hospitals and healthcare infrastructure, as well as Israel’s intensified blockade restricting the entry of essential medical items, have systematically dismantled Gaza’s healthcare system, leaving thousands without access to essential care, hygiene, and medical assistance. An independent UN Commission of Inquiry found that attacks against healthcare facilities resulted in the killing of civilians, including children and pregnant women, in violation of their right to life, concluding that “such acts constitute the crime against humanity of extermination.”
Dr Afnan Inshassi, a general physician working with the Culture & Free Thought Association (CFTA), one of MAP’s partner organisations, described the suffering women and girls faced during Israel’s war on Palestinians in Gaza: "Women were deprived of basic sexual and reproductive health services throughout the war. The conditions they endured were inhumane including lack of hygiene, no privacy, and little to no access to medical care. Even fundamental needs such as menstrual hygiene products were unavailable.”
The collapse of maternal and reproductive healthcareIsrael’s systematic dismantling of Gaza’s healthcare system has forced many to give birth in unsafe conditions, without medical assistance or access to sterile equipment. The destruction of primary healthcare centres and maternal and child health facilities has deprived pregnant women of access to prenatal care crucial for their survival. "Medical points within internally displaced persons shelters were makeshift and severely under-resourced. Privacy was a luxury we couldn’t afford because we lacked even the most basic materials to create separate spaces," Dr Inshassi explained.
One young mother, unable to access medical assistance due to telecommunications blackouts, was forced to deliver her baby in the hallway of a school-turned-shelter with the help of other displaced women. “She remained there with her newborn until morning, when she was transported to a hospital on a donkey cart in the freezing winter cold,” Samaher reported.
One of the most distressing cases MAP encountered was that of a woman who, shortly after giving birth, was diagnosed with breast cancer. She struggled to access both medical treatment for the cancer, and basic supplies for her newborn, including formula, which had become unaffordable due to the blockade. MAP provided protection services to the woman and referred her to a specialised institution for childcare.
Menstrual hygiene is another critical concern. In April 2024, UNFPA estimated that more than 690,000 menstruating women and adolescent girls faced severe shortages of hygiene products and lack access to clean and private facilities. Women and girls in Gaza have resorted to the use of desperate coping mechanisms, including using improvised sanitary cloth or sponges as sanitary pads to compensate for the lack of menstrual items. Overcrowded shelters and inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene facilities increase the risk of infections, and expose women to protection risks as they search for water, privacy and dignity.
No state can claim to uphold women’s rights while enabling the destruction of Palestinian women’s lives. The international community, including the UK, must move beyond rhetoric and take meaningful action to end impunity, and ensure Palestinian women’s sexual and reproductive health rights are fully realised.
How is MAP responding and how can you help?MAP has been working alongside its partners to provide critical support to women in Gaza, including:
Medical services, consultations and examinations at medical points. Distributing hygiene and dignity kits. Case management services to respond to protection needs. Mental health and psychosocial support services Protection services, such as cash assistance to help women secure food, transportation, and other essential needs. Legal assistance, helping women obtain official documents lost during Israel’s military assault, including birth and death certificates.This International Women's Day, please donate to help provide women in Gaza with essential medical support. Your gift could help us reach more Palestinian women with medical services, hygiene kits and mental health support. Donate today, stand side by side with Palestinian women.
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Photo: A Palestinian woman with a MAP mental health facilitators at MAP’s Solidarity Polyclinic in Deir al-Balah. (Credit: Palm Media/MAP).