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The residents of Gaza City are not only corralled by Israel’s siege and bombing, but also by infections from overflowing sewage, the pathogens seeping from contaminated water puddles, the immunity-threatening diseases emerging from overcrowded displacement camps, and the toxic residues of unexploded ordnance. As a result of Israel’s campaign of genocide, Gaza’s fragile health care system is experiencing an unprecedented outbreak of Guillain-Barré syndrome, or GBS.

GBS is a rare autoimmune neurological disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks the peripheral nerves — many of which are responsible for initiating muscle movement, while others transmit sensations of pain, touch, and temperature. This, in turn, leads to a progressive loss of sensation that typically begins in the legs and moves upward. In severe cases, GBS can deteriorate into complete paralysis, along with difficulty in breathing, swallowing, and seeing. Such complications can be life-threatening. Globally, it affects a small percentage of the population — about 1 to 2 cases per 100,000 people — and occurs across all ages and genders, with a slight predominance in males.

Guillain-Barré syndrome’s root cause is not yet fully understood, but there is strong evidence linking it to Campylobacter jejuni bacteria and certain enteroviruses. Once diagnosed, the condition requires urgent medical intervention and supportive care — often including intensive care unit monitoring, mechanical ventilation, plasmapheresis, and optimal intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) therapy. These measures are crucial to halt further complications and prevent progression toward paralysis and respiratory distress.

Yet in Gaza, the ongoing genocide has reshaped every medical protocol. Agreed-upon standards, medical guidelines, and even humanitarian charters have been brutally upended. The catastrophic collapse of Gaza’s health care system, the severe shortage of medications, and the scarcity of medics have allowed both the number of cases and the severity of GBS to worsen unchecked. According to numbers from the Ministry of Health shared with Truthout, between June 1 and October 17, 2025, 130 cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome were recorded in the Gaza Strip, with 20 recorded deaths. The majority of those diagnosed were males: 80 compared to 50 females.

The findings showed that individuals older than 17 were at higher risk of developing GBS compared to those under 15 — not to mention its intertwined impact with acute flaccid paralysis and polio in children. Up to 90 percent of Gaza’s water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure is destroyed, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Together........

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