Israel continues its intensive bombardment near several hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip, officials in the besieged enclave say, as all communications and internet services have once again been cut.
“For more than an hour, intense bombardments have been taking place around hospitals,” said Salama Maarouf, head of the Hamas government press office, on Sunday evening.
The area around the largest hospital in the Palestinian territory, Al Shifa, was the scene of particularly violent strikes, according to Marouf.
Al Jazeera’s Safwat Kahlout, reporting from Deir Al Balah in central Gaza, also said Sunday’s heaviest shelling took place in the area surrounding the hospital.
“We can understand that these airstrikes are aimed at pushing Israeli troops surrounding Gaza City back towards Al Shifa Hospital. We know that thousands of people have left their homes in these neighborhoods heading to the hospital, looking for shelter,” he said.
“Which indicates that the Israeli army is planning something big, perhaps in the next few hours or in the next few days, regarding the Al Shifa hospital itself. »
🚨Approximately 2.3 million Gaza civilians 👨👩👧👦are currently unable to access emergency medical services 🚑amid ongoing bombardment, experiencing their third communications blackout since the escalation began .#Gaza_under_attack
– PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 5, 2023
Earlier on Sunday, an Israeli attack struck near Al Quds Hospital in Gaza City, injuring at least 14 people and damaging the building.
The bombing came after the Israeli military once again accused Hamas of using the hospitals in its military campaign against Israel.
“Hamas places forces and weapons inside, under and around schools, mosques, homes and UN facilities,” Israeli army spokesman Daniel told reporters on Sunday. Hagari.
“One of Hamas’s worst war crimes is the use of hospitals to hide its terrorist infrastructure. »
Hamas has repeatedly rejected this accusation.
The Israeli military confirmed on Sunday that “significant” strikes were underway in Gaza, with a military spokesperson saying the Israeli ground attack had split the Palestinian territory in two.
Israeli forces “surrounded Gaza City… There is now a southern Gaza and a northern Gaza,” said spokesman Daniel Hagari. The troops “have reached the coastline and are holding it,” he added.
Internet access advocacy group NetBlocks.org reported a “collapse of connectivity” across Gaza. The outage was confirmed by Palestinian telecommunications company Paltel.
“We have lost communication with the vast majority of UNRWA team members,” U.N. Palestinian refugee agency spokeswoman Juliette Touma told The Associated Press. The first outage in Gaza lasted 36 hours and the second a few hours.
Concerns about health facilities housing civilians
The World Health Organization (WHO) has expressed concern over the safety of patients, health workers and thousands of people housed at Al Quds Hospital.
“WHO reiterates its call for an immediate ceasefire, active protection of civilians and health care, as well as respect for international humanitarian law,” the agency said in a message on X.
“In our hospital in Al Quds, we are deeply concerned about the situation due to the intense bombings of recent days, which have particularly affected the surroundings of the hospital,” said Tommaso della Longa, spokesperson for the Federation International Red Armed Forces, based in Geneva. Cross and Red Crescent, told Al Jazeera.
“Yesterday (Saturday), literally the building in front of the hospital was hit,” he said, adding that the attack broke windows and smoke entered the hospital, which is currently treating around 500 patients.
Hospitals and ambulances have been hit repeatedly since the latest Israeli attacks began on October 7, killing patients, displaced civilians sheltering in the facilities as well as health workers.
According to the WHO, 39 health facilities have been damaged since the start of the war. Hospitals were also forced to close or withdraw their services after electricity and fuel supplies were cut off.
At least 9,770 Palestinians, including 4,008 children, have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the start of the latest war, while entire neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble. More than 1,400 people were killed in a Hamas attack on southern Israel that sparked this war.
Nearly 1.5 million people are now displaced inside Gaza, according to the United Nations.
