Gaza Doctors: 70% of Miscarriages Tied to War
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- al-Awda Hospital maternity director Dr. Yasser Saadeddine told Al Jazeera that roughly 70 percent of pregnancy losses his team treats are linked to the war and blockade, citing malnutrition, poor hygiene, environmental contamination, and continuous displacement as drivers.
- Nuha Abu Lebda lost three pregnancies during forced displacement across the Gaza Strip, selling her gold and possessions to pay for heparin injections to prevent blood clotting, but miscarried each time despite treatment.
- Mai Zaqout lost her daughter during childbirth because medical resources and support were unavailable shortly after her husband was killed; doctors told her the baby had been dead inside her womb for a month.
- Sara al-Awad began bleeding severely at eight months pregnant after explosions in Gaza City's Tal al-Hawa neighborhood caused her placenta to separate; she reached al-Quds Hospital by wheelchair and underwent an emergency C-section, delivering baby Muhammad at 1.1 kg who spent 37 days in an incubator while the family was separated by ongoing fighting.
- Doctors across Gaza report increases in miscarriages, stillbirths, and premature deliveries, attributing the surge to psychological stress, hunger, displacement, and shortages of medicines, equipment, and medical staff.
- Palestinian women including Iman Badah, Nuha Salameh, and Nidaa Seyam describe losing the children they had waited years for — preterm births during displacement, twin pregnancies ended by trauma, and second miscarriages linked to malnutrition and toxic fumes — with the article noting these losses continue even after October's declared ceasefire.
Why it matters: With Gaza's health system described by the article as collapsed and hospitals facing shortages of medicines, equipment, and staff, the 70 percent figure from al-Awda Hospital quantifies a reproductive health crisis that interviewees say is continuing even after October's declared ceasefire — an entire cohort of women losing pregnancies they spent years trying to carry to term because of war conditions their doctors say are directly responsible.
