Besieged Gaza’s Main COVID-19 Lab Halts Work for Lack of Equipment

By Staff, Agencies

The main laboratory conducting coronavirus tests in the ‘Israeli’-blockaded Gaza Strip halted operations Sunday due to a severe shortage of essential equipment and materials, Gaza's Health Ministry said.

This is the latest in a series of dire signs about the state of Gaza's medical situation due to the ongoing rise in the number of coronavirus patients. Around 30 percent of coronavirus tests in Gaza are coming back positive, with the daily number of tests ranging from 2,000 to 2,500.

726 new patients were diagnosed in the 24 hours, bringing the number of active coronavirus patients to 10,591. 375 are hospitalized and 157 are on ventilators.

The ministry said it recently managed to increase the number of coronavirus beds in hospitals to 170 and hopes to obtain equipment in the next few weeks to further increase the number to 200.

Meanwhile, ministry sources said the actual number of virus carriers is probably higher than the official figure, given the relatively low number of daily tests and the fact that the diagnostic lab has ceased to function.