Hepatitis A infections have increased in Gaza due to overcrowding, lack of clean water and poor sanitation, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said citing the Gaza Ministry of Health, run by Hamas. 

UNRWA cited the health ministry saying suspected cases have increased 16 times in January more than the entire month of November last year. 

Thousands of displaced people are sharing toilets and shower areas, UNRWA said on Facebook. 

The WHO chief last week said that 24 Hepatitis A cases in Gaza were confirmed through test kits and warned of “inhumane living conditions” contributing to the spread of the disease. 

“The capacity to diagnose diseases remains extremely limited. There is no functioning laboratory. The capacity to respond remains limited too,” the WHO director general Tedros Ghebreyesus said on X on Thursday. 

As of last week, no deaths were reported in Gaza from Hepatitis A, as per the WHO, but several thousand people with jaundice were recorded “presumably also due to Hepatitis A,” Ghebreyusus said. 

Some background: According to the CDC, symptoms of Hepatitis A can include yellow skin or eyes, not wanting to eat, an upset stomach, vomiting, stomach pain, fever, dark urine or light colored stools, diarrhea, joint pain and feeling tired. Adults are more likely than children to have symptoms if they are infected.