Al-Aqsa Hospital Shuts Surgical Rooms After 400 kVA Generator Failure as Gaza Oil Costs Hit 2,200 Shekels
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 5
Al-Aqsa Hospital Shuts Surgical Rooms After 400 kVA Generator Failure as Gaza Oil Costs Hit 2,200 Shekels
2 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 5
Summary
Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in central Gaza closed its surgical operating rooms after a small backup unit supporting a 400 kVA generator failed, leaving too little power to handle the load.
Patchwork repairs are replacing real maintenance because spare parts are unavailable, hospital director Raed Hussein said, with some generators already permanently out of service and summer heat expected to worsen the strain.
Three firefighting and rescue vehicles and two ambulances have already broken down as Gaza's civil defence warns operations could stop completely under shortages of engine oil, fuel and vehicle parts.
Engine oil now costs about 2,200 shekels a litre versus roughly 25 before the war, crippling transport, bakery generators and water systems; UNICEF said desalination output has fallen to 16,000 cubic meters a day from 20,000 in March.
The shortages add to a wider humanitarian collapse in Gaza, where Israeli import restrictions and the war have left residents struggling to reach hospitals, secure bread and water, or cook without scarce gas or costly firewood.
With Gaza's infrastructure failing over basic spare parts, is an irreversible societal collapse now inevitable?
When a hospital's last generator fails, what is the true human cost of blocking a single spare part?
Beyond bombs and bullets, how is a blockade on engine oil systematically dismantling daily life in Gaza?
Gaza 2026: Al-Aqsa Hospital’s Shutdown and the Broader Collapse of Health and Humanitarian Systems
Overview
Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir Al-Balah is the only government hospital for Gaza’s central governorate, serving over half a million people, including many displaced by conflict. The hospital is desperately overcrowded and has suffered repeated attacks, causing damage and casualties. On June 2, 2026, its fourth backup generator failed, forcing all operating rooms to shut down and putting critical departments like dialysis, neonatal, and intensive care at risk. This crisis highlights how the destruction of Gaza’s power infrastructure and ongoing blockade have left hospitals dependent on failing generators, endangering patient lives and worsening the humanitarian emergency.