War in Gaza ‘indermined’ maternal and neonatal health, research shows

The war in Gaza has undermined maternal health and caused a surge in preventable deaths among pregnant women and newborns, a report finds.

The research documents widespread malnutrition, destroyed services and restrictions on food and medical supplies that clinicians say have devastated women’s ability to conceive, carry and give birth safely.

The report was produced by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), a US charity, and the Global Human Rights Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School.

Saman Zia-Zarifi, executive director of PHR and one of the report’s authors, said: “The entire next generation of children born in Gaza are going to be affected by the biological and physiological impact of malnutrition. This is a long term issue, and we’re not even seeing a short term response.”

Clinicians interviewed described acute malnutrition among women of reproductive age, causing menstrual disruption, infertility and anaemia (too few healthy red blood cells).

One gynaecologist said: “Every single woman I’ve seen – pregnant or not – was malnourished.”

The report describes a near-collapse of safe labour and delivery care. Women frequently needed emergency caesarean sections, but hospitals often lacked anaesthesia, blood products and sterile surgical supplies.

More than 1,460 premature births were reported, alongside over 2,500 neonatal intensive care admissions (specialist care for newborns). At least 21 newborns reportedly died on their first day of life.

As of March 2025, only eight of Gaza’s 21 hospitals and four field hospitals were partially operational for maternal healthcare. All facilities providing infertility treatment were destroyed.

Between May and June 2025, the Palestinian Ministry of Health reported a 41 per cent decrease in birth rate in Gaza compared with the same period in 2022.

One nurse reported: “These otherwise healthy women with no co-morbidities were not producing any breast milk, even though they had in previous pregnancies.”

Zia-Zarifi said: “Our evidence shows that the impact on reproductive rights, the reproductive violence, was predicted. These warnings were disregarded, either intentionally or recklessly.”