Geneva/London, October 22, 2025: The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that Gaza is facing a health “catastrophe” that could last for “generations to come,” as the territory’s healthcare system remains on the brink of collapse despite a fragile ceasefire.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said a “massive scale-up of aid” was urgently needed to address famine, injuries, disease outbreaks, and widespread mental health trauma among Gaza’s population.
“On top of famine, overwhelming injuries, and a collapsed healthcare system, there is restricted access to humanitarian aid — a very fatal combination,” Dr Tedros said. “This makes the situation catastrophic and beyond words.”
He added that the long-term impact on public health would persist for generations, warning: “If you take famine and combine it with a mental health crisis that is rampant, then the situation is a crisis for generations to come.”
The comments come as the United States seeks to reinforce a ceasefire it helped broker on October 10, described by Washington as the first phase of a 20-point peace plan aimed at expanding humanitarian access.
Despite some increase in aid deliveries, Dr Tedros said the current levels were “far below what is needed” to rebuild Gaza’s health infrastructure. The WHO chief called on Israel to “de-link aid from the wider conflict” and to stop “weaponising humanitarian assistance.”
According to UN agencies, around 200–300 aid trucks are entering Gaza daily — far short of the 600 per day required. The World Food Programme reported that 6,700 tonnes of food had entered the territory since the ceasefire, less than half its target.
Dr Tedros also urged Israel to reopen all access points for humanitarian deliveries and allow previously barred aid organizations to resume operations. He said supplies essential for field hospitals had been confiscated on the grounds of “dual-use” concerns.
The WHO chief noted that medical evacuation flights from Gaza had been suspended for two weeks, leaving thousands waiting for treatment abroad. “Seven hundred people have already died while waiting for medical evacuation,” he said.
The Israeli military halted aid deliveries temporarily on Sunday after two soldiers were killed in a Hamas attack. Dozens of Palestinians were killed in retaliatory air strikes before deliveries resumed on Monday under international pressure.
Since Israel launched its military campaign in response to the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led assault that killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostages, at least 68,229 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
A UN-backed assessment in July concluded that famine had already occurred in Gaza, though Israel rejected the findings. The UN has estimated that $70 billion will be needed to rebuild the enclave, with at least $7 billion required to restore the health sector alone.
Dr Tedros concluded: “We have been saying for a long time that peace is the best medicine. The ceasefire is fragile — some people who were celebrating it are now dead. That tells you how dire the situation remains.”
