Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned this Monday that Israeli authorities continue to carry out a "genocide" in the Gaza Strip, destroying the livelihoods of the population, as three years since the attacks by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) --which caused more than a thousand deaths and 250 kidnappings-- and the subsequent military offensive by Israel on the Palestinian enclave are about to be fulfilled.
"Israel is progressively suffocating Gaza and continues to perpetrate a genocide," the NGO denounced, while the Israeli Army extends its presence beyond what is known as the yellow line, announced by Israel a few days after the ceasefire agreement reached in October of last year.
This advance of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is "confining" the Gazan population to an increasingly reduced territory, despite the fact that, MSF recalls, Israel presented the yellow line --which at that time encompassed more than half of the Strip-- as a "temporary military withdrawal position in a first phase," while now it occupies around 65% of the enclave.
"The 'yellow line' cannot simply be considered a line on a map. It has become a mechanism of encirclement and ethnic cleansing, while isolating communities from infrastructure, healthcare, water, and other essential elements they need to survive," pointed out the head of MSF's emergency response for Gaza, Amande Bazerolle.
According to the organization, the "threat is increasingly immediate" for those living near the yellow line, to which is added the insecurity of approaching an area that "is not clearly or consistently marked." Consequently, a growing number of Gazans are exposed to being hit by gunfire from Israeli forces and find more obstacles to access the vital aid provided by MSF and other entities, which are forced to suspend the transport of essential goods such as water.
As a result of the advance of Israeli troops, families are crammed "in overcrowded and uninhabitable conditions, with insufficient access to drinking water, sanitation, shelter, or healthcare," which increases the risk of epidemic outbreaks. MSF teams have treated "only" in 2026 more than 11,000 cases of skin diseases, including scabies, and have recorded more than 1,500 diagnoses of chickenpox in June and July, in addition to cases of gastroenteritis, acute respiratory infections, hepatitis, and lice.
"Most people have less than six liters of water a day for domestic use and have limited access to basic hygiene items, such as soap and detergent (...) At the same time, we are suffering from a severe shortage of medical supplies. Even the cream we need to treat scabies has been restricted by the Israeli authorities," lamented Dr. Murad Asaliya, head of medical activities in Gaza.
Along with the blockade of medicines and medical supplies, Israel has also limited the entry of motor oil and spare parts, which directly affects the functioning of hospitals, health centers, and ambulances, "paralyzing" the infrastructure necessary for their activity and causing recurrent failures in electric generators.
MSF estimates that the destruction of more than 80% of Gaza's infrastructure, combined with persistent violence, forced displacement, and the physical and psychological aftermath on the population, will prevent any significant reconstruction process in the coming years and that "generations will be needed" just to attempt to reverse the damage accumulated during these three years.
"Destruction, displacement, and deprivation have been normalized; they are practices that Israel carries out with total impunity. Governments must act now to ensure that Israel stops the destruction and killings, prevents ethnic cleansing, and stops denying the Palestinian population the means to survive," Bazerolle has demanded.