Fatshimetrie
In a tragic new development in the ongoing conflict, Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza was targeted by an intense Israeli military attack overnight Thursday into Friday. The hospital’s director described the bombardment as “catastrophic,” reporting a massive barrage of aerial and ground fire.
Witnesses reported that Israeli forces dropped bombs from quadcopter drones, injuring at least three medical staff, including a colleague who had already been wounded multiple times. Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, told CNN, “Tonight was one of the most difficult nights.” The attacks caused significant structural damage, with doors and windows blown out and water tanks pulverized.
Abu Safiya deplored a “catastrophic scene” with aerial bombardments and artillery fire of unprecedented intensity and frequency. The attacks continued throughout the night, with massive destruction of nearby buildings.
Israeli forces launched air and ground incursions in several parts of northern Gaza in early October under the pretext of targeting the renewed Hamas presence. The two-month offensive has left streets strewn with debris, led to the deaths of entire families, and severely affected food, water and medicine supplies. Kamal Adwan Hospital has been the target of daily Israeli military fire, and has been raided at least six times since October 5, according to Abu Safiya.
The Israeli military claims that Hamas uses hospitals for military purposes, while Hamas denies using hospitals as cover. These allegations cannot be independently verified by CNN.
Thousands of Palestinians have been killed or missing, according to Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for Gaza’s Civil Defense, since October 5. The number of injured has reached 12,000. Rescue teams are having difficulty accessing survivors trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings.
In response to accusations by hospital director Kamal Adwan, the Israeli aid agency COGAT said that intense clashes were taking place between Israeli forces and terrorist organizations in the northern Gaza Strip. COGAT said it had facilitated the evacuation of patients, staff, and their transfer to other health facilities in the area.
However, despite these assurances, aid agencies warn that little aid is reaching neighborhoods and hospitals in northern Gaza. Aid restrictions imposed by Israel have left between 65,000 and 75,000 trapped residents without access to food, water, electricity and reliable health care.. UNRWA reported that the aid was grossly inadequate.
The WHO Director expressed concern about the repeated refusal by the Israeli authorities to grant humanitarian access to Kamal Adwan Hospital, where patients and medical staff are in urgent need of support. Health workers have also been victims of the violence, including a nurse killed in an attack and an orthopaedic surgeon who died near Kamal Adwan Hospital.
This escalation of violence underscores the urgent need for immediate humanitarian action to protect civilians and save innocent lives in this conflict-torn region. It is imperative that the international community step up its efforts to end the violence and find a peaceful solution to this devastating conflict.