Israel orders the emptying of a medical facility where there are nearly 400 civilians, including babies who need oxygen and incubators.
The director of one of Gaza’s last partially functioning hospitals appeals for help, saying Israeli forces have surrounded the medical facility.
Dr Hussam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, on Monday urged the international community to act “before it is too late”, calling the situation “horrible”.
He said obeying an Israeli order to empty the facility would be “virtually impossible” because nearly 400 civilians remain inside, including babies who need oxygen and incubators.
“The bombings continue from all sides, affecting the building, services and staff. This is a serious and extremely horrible situation,” said Abou Safia.
Outside Beit Lahiya hospital, Israeli forces placed what are believed to be explosives outside the doors. Witnesses said an automated guided vehicle delivered boxes with the word “danger” written on them.
Tareq Abu Azzoum, Tel Aviv Tribune’s Gaza correspondent, said the Israeli military deployed remote automated vehicles called “explosive robots” around the hospital.
“(The robots) are loaded with tons of explosives that can lead to the destruction of the neighborhood,” Abou Azzoum said.
“We have seen videos released by some medical staff inside Kamal Adwan Hospital showing how the Israeli army was using them near the hospital,” he added, saying this could be a sign of a new escalation in the conflict. the days to come.
“The Israeli army is systematically trying to exert ultimate pressure on the medical teams by causing serious destruction around (the hospital),” Abu Azzoum said.
Abu Safia said: “The world must understand that our hospital is being targeted with the intention of killing us and forcibly displacing us,” adding that Israeli bombardments continued Sunday evening, destroying homes and buildings. surrounding buildings.
“We urge the international community to intervene quickly and put an end to this ferocious attack against us in order to protect the health system, the workers and the patients there,” said the hospital director.
Since Monday morning, the hospital has been the target of bombs dropped by quadcopters in its courtyards and on its roof, once again threatening the hospital’s fuel and oxygen supplies, he said.
“The situation remains extremely dangerous and requires urgent international intervention before it is too late,” the doctor said.
Abu Safia made a similar call on Sunday, accusing Israel of directly bombing the hospital’s intensive care unit.
More than 14 months of Israeli attacks have devastated Gaza and displaced almost all of its 2.3 million residents. More than 45,000 people, mostly children and women, were killed in the offensive.
The Israeli genocide against the Palestinians began shortly after a Hamas-led incursion into Israeli territory on October 7, 2023, which killed nearly 1,100 people, according to Israeli officials, and about 250 others were captured.