Gaza doctors battle 'untreatable super-bacteria' that defies medical science

As Israeli forces continue their attacks on hospitals in Gaza, doctors and medical teams in the strip have been working under intense pressure, and with great difficulty, to treat illnesses and injuries due to the lack of proper medication and the rapid spread of bacteria.

“The medical teams in Gaza are fighting a fierce battle against bacteria, which no longer respond to most antibiotics,” said Izzedin Shaheen, a doctor in the besieged enclave, via X on 21 November. 

“Hardly any person with a wound infection survives, no matter how hard the doctors try. All the conditions are bad – no sterilization and no sufficient antibiotics. We have even found E. Coli bacteria in bone tissue, which is unfamiliar in medical books,” Shaheen added. 

The continued acceleration of the health crisis in Gaza coincides with Tel Aviv’s Generals’ Plan, which Israel is unofficially implementing in the northern strip, which has been besieged for nearly two months. The Israeli army has expelled over 100,000 Palestinians from the north, aiming to transform the area into an isolated military zone. 

Former Israeli general Giora Eiland, the man behind the Generals’ Plan, said on 17 November: “The international community warns us of a humanitarian disaster in Gaza and of severe epidemics. We must not shy away from this, as difficult as that may be. After all, severe epidemics in the south of the Gaza Strip will bring victory closer and reduce casualties among IDF soldiers.” 

International organizations have repeatedly warned over the months that Israel’s war in Gaza has resulted in a severe health crisis and the spread of numerous illnesses, particularly due to forced displacement orders against Palestinians – which crams the displaced into small areas that lack basic supplies and facilities for hygiene. 

The Israeli army has subjected 90 percent of the Gaza Strip’s population to forced displacement. 

As the Generals’ Plan unfolds, Israel has tightened its siege and increased attacks on the few remaining hospitals in northern Gaza. 

Beit Lahia’s Kamal Adwan Hospital has been under heavy attack. Israel bombarded the hospital late on 21 November, injuring six of its medical staff, including some who are in critical condition. The hospital’s main generator was destroyed, and its water tanks were punctured. 

The attack came less than a day after a massacre was committed by Israel on a residential block in the hospital’s vicinity. At least 66 were killed and more than 100 injured by the bombing. Around 200 people were present at the time of the attack, according to Kamal Adwan Hospital director Dr Hussam Abu Safia.

“The health system is collapsing in northern Gaza. We cannot provide anything, and all of our appeals are in vain," he said.

Abu Safia has appealed for immediate intervention from the international community. Around 80 people are at risk of death inside the facility, including eight who are in intensive care. 

An Israeli quadcopter targeted medical staff at Al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza early on Friday, hours after the latest attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital.