Humanitarian aid during the Gaza war in the context of "Gaza Strip famine"

The siege of North Gaza was an engagement of the Gaza war in the North Gaza Governorate, Gaza Strip, between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian forces. It began on 5 October 2024 when the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reinvaded Jabalia and its refugee camp for the first time in months since earlier fighting.

The siege was reportedly part of Israel's "generals' plan" to force Palestinians out of northern Gaza by designating it a combat zone and issuing evacuation orders to civilians under threat of death. The IDF imposed a complete siege on northern Gaza, cutting it off from Gaza City by destroying most of the roads leading south and preventing the entry of aid. Evacuations were hindered, however, by Israeli bombardments and shootings of fleeing civilians, leaving many trapped. Human rights groups raised concerns of war crimes, and Israeli actions were characterized as ethnic cleansing and genocide. Israel attacked hospitals and medical infrastructure, as international bodies warned of disastrous conditions in Jabalia.

During the Gaza war, the healthcare system of Gaza was destroyed by Israeli attacks on hospitals and health facilities, killing of healthcare workers, and blockade of medical supplies from entering Gaza. The resulting collapse of the healthcare system was part of a broader humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip caused by the war.

The hospitals faced a lack of fuel due to the Israeli siege and relied on backup generators for the first two weeks of the war. By 23 October 2023, Gaza hospitals began shutting down as they ran out of fuel, starting with the Indonesia Hospital. When hospitals lost power completely, multiple premature babies in NICUs died. By the end of May 2024, both the World Health Organization and International Rescue Committee reported only one-third of Gaza's hospitals remained at least partially operational.