'Israel' hindering rescue missions to Gaza's Nasser hospital, WHO says
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According to the World Health Organization, there are still an estimated 130 sick and injured patients, as well as at least 15 physicians and nurses, within the institution, and the conditions inside are conducive to disease transmission.
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A staff member at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis in Gaza on December 17, 2023 ( AFP)
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) are preventing medical rescue operations at the besieged Nasser Hospital, whose state is "indescribable."
The agency announced on social media that the UN health agency announced on social media that its workers had successfully transferred 32 critical patients, including two children, from the hospital on Sunday and Monday.
The transferred patients were relocated to different hospitals and field hospitals around the region.
Since taking over the hospital last week, the IOF has barred access to the complex.
According to the WHO, there are still an estimated 130 sick and injured patients, as well as at least 15 physicians and nurses, within the institution, and the conditions inside are conducive to disease transmission.
“WHO fears for the safety and well-being of the patients and health workers remaining in the hospital and warns that further disruption to life-saving care for the sick and injured would lead to more deaths.”
The agency's life-saving efforts at the besieged compound gave modest amounts of crucial medicines and food to the remaining patients and workers.
The hospital in Khan Younis, one of the few operational hospitals in the entire region, is now in an "indescribable" state.
The statement described that with the lack of water and electricity, the hospital's garbage and medical waste are creating the conditions for a "breeding ground for disease."
Patients die at Nasser Hospital as Israeli raid cuts off power
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza previously announced that the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis was now "out of service."
The ministry reported that four patients have perished after a lack of oxygen.
WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told a press briefing in Geneva that patients were in the hospital hallways, with just torches and cell phones providing illumination.
The statement concluded that the health group "repeats its calls for the protection of patients, health workers, health infrastructure, and civilians."
Days ago, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus revealed that despite attempts by the WHO team to assess patient conditions and critical medical needs, they were denied entry to the hospital compound for two consecutive days, he added.
Nasser hospital in #Gaza is not functional anymore, after a weeklong siege followed by the ongoing raid.
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) February 18, 2024
Both yesterday and the day before, the @WHO team was not permitted to enter the hospital to assess the conditions of the patients and critical medical needs, despite…
The Israeli war on hospitals continues
In the same context, the spokesperson of the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Ashraf al-Qudra, confirmed that the lack of fuel and the infighting surrounding the hospital forced it to go out of service.
"There are only four medical staffers currently caring for patients" inside the Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Younis, al-Qudra said as quoted by Reuters.
"The Nasser medical complex is the backbone of healthcare in the southern Gaza Strip. Its ceasing to function is a death sentence for hundreds of thousands of Palestinian displaced people in Khan Younis and Rafah," he added.
Concurrently, Israeli invading forces detained 100 Palestinians including medical staff at the hospital, raising concerns for the safety and well-being of both patients and staff who are currently trapped inside.
BREAKING| The Ministry of Health says Israel's military kidnapped 70 medical workers at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis in southern Gaza. pic.twitter.com/xbhx5O3VXY
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) February 18, 2024
“Newborn children are at risk of dying in the next few hours,” Gaza's health ministry cautioned on Saturday.
IOF transformed Nasser into 'military base'
The statement further mentioned that the military has transformed the hospital into a "military base" and arrested a significant number of medical personnel following a raid on the compound on Thursday.
The Israeli Army admitted that its soldiers stormed the hospital on Thursday. Simultaneously, the United Nations condemned the incursion, and medical personnel reported that the hospital was directly targeted by tank fire on Thursday. Following the raid, the power was cut off, and the generators ceased to function, resulting in the death of six patients due to a shortage of oxygen, as per the Health Ministry.
Concerns arose over the possible detention of Dr. Khaled al-Serr, a surgeon who remained on duty during the raid. A group of international doctors reported on Saturday that they lost contact with him 33 hours earlier. In his final communication, al-Serr detailed the death of an ICU patient due to the electricity shortage.
“Even as the Israeli military invaded Nasser hospital, Khaled continued sending us updates from the ICU,” the doctors stated.
A #Palestinian doctor shared a video from inside Nasser Hospital in #Gaza's southern area of Khan Younis, where the sound of gunfire could be heard as medical staff attended to injured patients amid the smoke and debris.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) February 15, 2024
Dr. Mohammed Harara is heard in the video saying, "The… pic.twitter.com/rO3mbfIMgt
Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation continues its genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza, launching a series of airstrikes targeting various areas of the Strip, resulting in numerous casualties and injuries.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced Tuesday that since October 7, the number of Palestinians martyred by the Israeli genocide against Gaza has risen to 29,195 and those injured to 69,170.
This comes as the Israeli occupation forces committed 9 massacres in 24 hours only murdering 103 Palestinians and injuring 142 others.
Many victims still remain under the rubble as the IOF deliberately prevents ambulances and civil defense crews from reaching them, the Ministry said.
