Reports of premature babies in intensive care having to be evacuated from Al-Shifa, as well as the destruction of embryos destined for implantation[5] added to concerns about the rising number of preterm births in Gaza.

[7] Starting on 21 October 2023, Medical Aid for Palestinians and UNICEF issued an "urgent warning" that 130 premature babies would die if fuel did not reach Gaza hospitals soon.

[8][9][10] On 23 October, officials in Gaza confirmed that due to the Israeli siege on fuel, when hospitals lost electricity, premature babies in NICUs were at risk of death.

[11][12] A press release from the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in April 2024 stated that pregnant women in Gaza had been experiencing premature labor and miscarriage at rates three times higher than before the conflict intensified.

[20][21] The IDF released a video showing them depositing at the front gate of al-Shifa 300 litres of fuel and a photo of a soldier loading mobile incubators.

On 14 December, the Gaza Health Ministry reported IDF soldiers had prevented medical staff from continuing support to 12 babies in intensive care.

[2] In March 2024, Dr. Husam Abu Safiya, the acting head of Kamal Adwan, reported that his staff were treating 300 to 400 children a day, with 75% suffering from malnutrition.

[42] In February 2024, the UN Population Fund reported that the anxiety mothers were experiencing due to incessant bombings and fleeing for safety had led to a rise in premature births.

[47] They are 9 or more clinics in the Gaza Strip that perform IVF related procedures, but most of the embryos were stored in 5 liquid nitrogen tanks at the Al Basma center.

[49] Bahaeldeen Ghalayini said a single Israeli shell struck the part of the centre where there embryos were stored on the ground floor, but he said he did not know if the lab had been specifically targeted by the strike.