The Israeli army is targeting three major hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip as doctors and authorities in the enclave demand immediate intervention from the international community.
On Tuesday, Israel’s week-long attacks intensified on the besieged Kamal Adwan Hospital and Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahiya, as well as al-Awda Hospital located east of the Jabalia refugee camp.
Two explosive-laden unmanned robotic vehicles, placed earlier by the Israeli army, exploded near Kamal Adwan in the early hours of Tuesday, injuring around 20 patients and medical staff, the director of Hussam Abu Safia Hospital.
It was the first time Israeli forces used explosives outside Kamal Adwan, but there have been similar reports of them being used to blow up buildings in northern Gaza.
Reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, Tel Aviv Tribune’s Hani Mahmoud said: “An eyewitness told us that much of the area around the hospital had been cleared of buildings, that the infrastructure had been destroyed and severely damaged, preventing movement in and out of the hospital. .”
The hospital was bombed several times by the Israeli army, rendering various services, including the intensive care unit, unusable.
Al-Awda, a charitable facility providing free healthcare in the northern part of the enclave, was hit on the third floor by the Israeli army on Tuesday. Parts of the building caught fire, which also spread to neighboring residential buildings.
The Indonesian Hospital, a larger health facility that has also come under increasing attack, has been threatened by Israeli forces with evacuating the entire facility.
Munir Al-Bursh, director of Gaza’s health ministry, said the Israeli army ordered hospital officials to evacuate it on Monday, before attacking it in the early hours of Tuesday and forcing people who were there to leave.
Tel Aviv Tribune’s Mahmoud said the two hospitals were providing medical supplies to besieged Kamal Adwan and also transferring patients out of there when possible.
“The Indonesian hospital has been paralyzed by the attacks in recent months. Much of the facility was damaged, forcing many people to evacuate. As early as midnight, the Israeli army warned everyone inside the hospital, including patients, to leave the building and take to the streets in cold weather, amid intimidation from tanks and quadcopters “, he said.
Hospital directors, health authorities and rights organizations inside and outside Gaza have condemned the attacks and called for international help, but the situation in the north has only deteriorate.
Gaza’s health ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that the Israeli army was trying to shut down the three hospitals in the north, and called for intervention.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) said that more than 20 attacks on Kamal Adwan Hospital in recent days using drones, bombings and gunfire show that “the genocide persists” in Gaza.
Aid delivery ‘nearly impossible’
The Israeli army continues to launch numerous deadly air raids on Gaza every day, with medical sources confirming on Tuesday that there have been at least 32 deaths in the past 24 hours.
The latest Israeli attacks included the bombing of a house in central Gaza, which killed four people, including a child and two women.
The Israeli military has continued to block humanitarian aid destined for the enclave, with the chaos created by its ground offensive presenting myriad challenges for safely getting the meager trucks to designated locations, aid groups say.
On Monday evening, an Israeli drone attack struck an area about 1 km from Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, targeting a humanitarian aid convoy.
Tel Aviv Tribune’s Mahmoud, reporting from the hospital, said the Israeli army first allowed gangs to attack the convoy with the aim of looting it, only to later launch a drone attack on security guards trying to to protect the cargo.
“These appear to be deliberate attacks aimed at sowing further chaos. So far, Israel has killed 30 of these security guards.
Tom Fletcher, head of the United Nations humanitarian agency (OCHA), said that in a year when more humanitarian workers have been killed than ever before, Gaza is currently facing its most dangerous situation yet. day.
“As a result, despite the massive humanitarian needs, it has become almost impossible to provide even a fraction of the aid so urgently needed. Israeli authorities continue to deny us meaningful access: more than 100 requests for access to northern Gaza have been refused since October 6. We are also now witnessing the breakdown of law and order and the systematic armed looting of our supplies by local gangs.