These attacks violate their physical and mental integrity, their dignity, their privacy, and the future of an entire people. They are constituent elements of genocide.
Between May 2024 and August 2025, Médecins du Monde documented continuous attacks on health centres, a dramatic shortage of staff and essential supplies in Gaza. In this context, access to prenatal care, emergency obstetric services, family planning, and protection against sexual and gender-based violence is severely hindered.
- Out of 22,747 sexual and reproductive health consultations conducted in Médecins du Monde’s health centres in Gaza, 36% involved genital infections linked to the lack of water and hygiene, and the high cost of menstrual products (a minimum of $15 for a pack of low-quality sanitary pads) – some women report having to use pieces of used fabric as protection, for example.
- 84% of infected women had been displaced at least once since the start of the war.
- 85% of pregnant women are at risk of complications during their pregnancy, and our teams observe that malnutrition is increasingly affecting them, making them the first victims of this intentional famine that risks spreading in the southern part of the enclave if nothing changes (the malnutrition rate among screened pregnant and breastfeeding women rose from 31.3% in July 2025 to 35% in August 2025, for example).
Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
Another alarming figure: according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, miscarriages have increased by 300%.
These are direct consequences of the conflict, the lack of access to contraception and abortion, as well as the absence of pregnancy monitoring.
- Overall, our teams have noted an increase in curative consultations and a decrease in preventive consultations such as prenatal follow-ups. This trend was mainly observed in the areas most affected by the attacks, particularly in the northern part of the enclave.
- During the truce from January to March 2025, infections dropped by 50%, and prenatal consultations increased: proof that this suffering is entirely caused by the blockade and the war.
“A pregnancy does not stop during war.” Dr. Israa Saleh, Gazan doctor and sexual and reproductive health advisor at Médecins du Monde
Some women lose their babies due to trauma caused by massacres.
Others give birth in overcrowded shelters without anesthesia or medication, sometimes forced to cut their own umbilical cords under gunfire. Many mothers tell us they do not have the strength to feed their newborns.
These dramatic situations, entirely caused by human action, endanger the lives and dignity of women and girls. They also compromise the future of future generations and, therefore, the survival of the Palestinian people.
“In Gaza, women and girls are not only deprived of care: they are deliberately targeted.” Manon Hourdin, Director of International Operations and Strategic Development
By preventing access to sexual and reproductive health, the Israeli authorities are violating their dignity, their integrity, and the future of an entire people. This is not an accident but two years of total war! It is time for third-party states to act to protect the Gazan population by demanding an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire.
Médecins du Monde in the occupied Palestinian territory:
Médecins du Monde has been working across the occupied Palestinian territory for over 20 years with a team of 120 people in Gaza and 78 in the West Bank.
- In Gaza, our teams provide primary health care through several health centres. They offer general medical consultations, mental health and psychosocial support, sexual and reproductive health care, vaccination, and nutritional support, among other services.
- In the West Bank, Médecins du Monde operates from Ramallah to Jenin. The team helps rehabilitate local clinics, provides medicines and medical equipment, and deploys a mobile health unit to meet increased needs, particularly in mental health, while strengthening emergency preparedness among health actors.