The United Nations has issued a dire warning that vital services in Gaza — including hospitals, water desalination plants, and telecommunications — are on the brink of collapse unless fuel purchased externally is immediately allowed into the besieged territory.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 280,000 liters of urgently needed fuel were successfully relocated from the Al Tahreer station in Rafah to Deir al Balah earlier this week. However, this limited transfer, the first in 110 days, is far from sufficient to sustain critical infrastructure.

"While this buys a bit of time, it is far from enough," OCHA said in a statement. "Unless fuel purchased outside is allowed to enter Gaza very soon, essential services such as hospitals, ambulances, water systems, and communications will grind to a halt."

The warning comes amid ongoing violence, with reports of widespread fatalities and injuries — including among civilians seeking aid. UN humanitarians also reported that attempts to repair damaged fiber-optic cables have been obstructed, leading to a telecommunications blackout in central and southern Gaza for the third consecutive day. Although Israeli authorities initially approved a repair team, they later blocked their movement, OCHA said.

"This outage is not just a communications issue," the agency emphasized. "It is cutting people off from life-saving information and preventing humanitarian teams from coordinating or moving safely."

OCHA also highlighted a severe shelter crisis. No shelter materials have entered Gaza since March 1, and despite limited entry of some commodities, items such as tents, tarpaulins, and timber remain banned. Nearly every Gazan has been displaced multiple times, with one in three displaced again since the most recent ceasefire breakdown.

Shelter conditions have deteriorated sharply, with makeshift accommodations now crowded into bombed-out schools, public lots, and rubble-strewn urban spaces lacking basic infrastructure. The UN and its partners have nearly one million shelter items, including 50,000 tents, ready to be deployed immediately if access is granted.

Meanwhile, a joint UN and World Health Organization (WHO) team visited the overstretched Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, which is operating under immense strain due to a surge in casualties and critical shortages. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that the facility is hosting double its patient capacity. A WHO-supported tent, originally intended for pediatric care, is now functioning as an overcrowded trauma ward.

The hospital is unable to scale up its operations due to a lack of essential equipment — including ventilators, beds, and monitors — as well as insufficient medical personnel. The WHO managed to deliver a minimal quantity of fuel to keep generators running.

The Nasser Medical Complex remains within an area under an Israeli-issued displacement order, complicating access for staff and patients. Fuel shortages and security fears have further paralyzed movement.

As Gaza’s humanitarian crisis deepens, UN officials are urgently calling for unimpeded access and immediate international intervention to prevent the total collapse of essential services. (ILKHA)