The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Sunday that it has lost communication with Al-Shifa Hospital, saying there are reports that some people who fled the hospital were shot, injured and even killed.
“As horrific reports continue to emerge of the hospital being the target of repeated attacks, we believe our contacts have joined tens of thousands of displaced people who have taken refuge on the hospital grounds and are fleeing the area,” the WHO said in a statement report. rack.
Meanwhile, Palestinian authorities also announced the closure of the hospital this Sunday, following an increase in attacks in the area and the lack of electricity, a situation that made operations in Gaza’s largest hospital complex impossible.
A spokesperson for the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed the closure, stating that it was no longer feasible to provide medical services at the center, especially after the deaths of five patients – two of whom were premature babies – as a result of the blackouts. .
The official also emphasized that there are still more than a hundred bodies in hospital without burial.
Faced with the deterioration of the situation, WHO reiterates its call “for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza as the only way to save lives and reduce terrible suffering” and recalls that “hospitals, patients, health workers and people who have shelter in health care protected by the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law.”
According to the WHO, Al-Shifa Hospital – the largest medical complex in Gaza – has reportedly been attacked several times in the past 48 hours, killing several people and injuring many others.
“The intensive care unit was damaged by shelling, while parts of the hospital where displaced people were sheltering were also damaged,” he lamented.
The WHO adds that the latest information it has received shows that the hospital was surrounded by tanks and that professionals warned of the lack of drinking water and the risk that intensive care units, ventilators and incubators will soon stop working due to the lack of fuel, putting patients’ lives in immediate danger.
The World Health Organization expresses “serious concerns” for the safety of health workers, hundreds of sick and injured people, including babies on life support and displaced people who remain in hospital.
“The number of hospitalized patients is almost double capacity, even after services are limited to life-saving emergency care,” he warns.
The WHO reminds us that “patients seeking health care should never be exposed to fear, and health professionals who have sworn an oath to treat them should never be forced to risk their own lives to provide care.”
More than 11,000 people were killed and nearly 27,500 injured in the Gaza Strip during the war that broke out on October 7, following a Hamas attack on Israel in which 1,200 people were killed and 240 kidnapped.
Source: DN
