Chickenpox Spreads Through Crowded Gaza Refugee Camps

A chickenpox outbreak is spreading rapidly through Gaza's densely populated refugee camps, leaving children like 8-year-old Ruba Saadeh suffering from inflamed blisters. The disease is flourishing in the dire conditions created by the ongoing conflict, which has displaced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into makeshift tent settlements lacking basic necessities.

"The doctor told her she needs to be bathed every day and isolated for 20 days. But how can we isolate her? We all live together in one crowded tent," said Ruba's 19-year-old sister, Alaa. This lack of space for isolation is a critical factor in the disease's transmission, according to Raed Abdel Karim Abu Sariya, a dermatologist with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.

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The doctor told her she needs to be bathed every day and isolated for 20 days. But how can we isolate her? We all live together in one crowded tent.

"Chickenpox patients need to be isolated because this disease spreads through respiratory infections. However, the conditions in Gaza's camps make isolating patients almost impossible. Imagine 10, 15, even 20 people living in a small tent. Where are they supposed to isolate the patient?" he asked while examining a child covered in red rashes.

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Patients need to be isolated because this disease spreads through respiratory infections. However, the conditions in Gaza's camps make isolating patients almost impossible. Imagine 10, 15, even 20 people living in a small tent. Where are they supposed to isolate the patient?

Images from Gaza City show murky water and garbage surrounding temporary settlements, with children walking barefoot through the rows of tents. Patients are seen queuing for treatment outside a Palestinian Red Crescent medical center. While chickenpox is typically a manageable childhood illness in developed countries, the unsanitary conditions in Gaza's camps make prevention and symptom management significantly more challenging.

Health authorities have recorded over 9,300 suspected cases of chickenpox across Gaza as of early July, with a high concentration in the southern area of Khan Younis. "That is the most densely populated area in the Gaza Strip. Families are sheltering almost on top of each other," said Louise Wateridge, a spokesperson for the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). "Chickenpox is just part of the problem. There are also respiratory infections, watery diarrhea, and now more than half of households report skin diseases, lice, mites, and scabies. More children are requiring hospital treatment, while Gaza's health system is on the brink of collapse."

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That is the most densely populated area in the Gaza Strip. Families are sheltering almost on top of each other. Chickenpox is just part of the problem. There are also respiratory infections, watery diarrhea, and now more than half of households report skin diseases, lice, mites, and scabies. More children are requiring hospital treatment, while Gaza's health system is on the brink of collapse.