The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday that Kamal Adwan Hospital, the last major health facility in northern Gaza, knocked out of service by an Israeli raid the day before, was “now empty”.
“Kamal Adwan is now empty. Last night, the remaining 15 critical patients, 50 caregivers and 20 health workers were transferred to the Indonesian hospital, which lacks the necessary equipment and supplies to provide adequate care,” the WHO said, adding that it was “ dismayed” by the raid. “Moving and treating these critically ill patients under such conditions poses serious risks to their survival.”
In addition, “an urgent WHO mission to the Indonesian hospital is planned for tomorrow (editor’s note: Sunday) to assess the situation in the facility, provide basic medical supplies, food and “water, and safely transfer critical patients to Gaza City for continued care.”
The WHO also relays accusations according to which “several people were stripped naked and forced to walk towards the south of Gaza”. The Hamas government’s Health Ministry in Gaza claimed that Israeli troops had taken “dozens of medical staff from Kamal Adwan Hospital” to “a detention center for interrogation,” including the director , Dr Hossam Abou Safiya.
The Israeli army said it launched an operation on Friday morning near the Kamal Adwan hospital, which plays a crucial role in a besieged Gaza Strip and whose health services are exhausted after more than a year of war. “The systematic dismantling of the health system and the siege of more than 80 days in the north of Gaza endanger the lives of the 75,000 Palestinians remaining in the area,” denounces the UN agency.