The Director of Medical Relief in Gaza, Dr. Bassam Zaqout, warned of serious concerns over the possible emergence of a new epidemic in the Strip, amid a sharp deterioration in health and environmental conditions and the widespread presence of rodents among the tents of displaced people.

Zaqout said medical authorities are monitoring alarming indicators pointing to the potential spread of leptospirosis, an infectious disease transmitted to humans through contact with the urine of rats and rodents, which have proliferated noticeably in densely populated displacement areas.

He explained that the risk of infection increases when contaminated rainwater and floodwater mix with rodent waste, particularly when such water comes into contact with open wounds on the skin.

Zaqout stressed that children are the most vulnerable group, especially those who play barefoot in contaminated water inside displacement camps.

He added that medical teams, in cooperation with the World Health Organization, have collected samples from a number of suspected cases to be sent to laboratories outside the Gaza Strip, due to the lack of local laboratory capacity following the destruction of the health infrastructure during the ongoing war.