DaysofPal- In a devastating turn of events, Israeli soldiers have raided Kamal Adwan Hospital, the final operational medical facility in northern Gaza. The assault has left the hospital in ruins, with large sections set ablaze and hundreds of people forcibly evacuated.
Gaza’s Ministry of Health reported losing contact with the hospital staff on Friday, as the facility in Beit Lahiya had been under intense pressure and siege from Israeli forces for weeks.
The fate of many patients remains unknown. Deputy Health Minister Youssef Abu el-Rish stated that Israeli forces ignited fires in critical areas, including the surgical department, laboratory, and storehouse. The blaze rapidly spread throughout the medical complex, destroying operating rooms, ambulance units, and warehouses.
The attack has rendered the hospital completely non-functional, with all generators destroyed. Israeli forces reportedly forced patients and the injured, at gunpoint, to transfer to the Indonesian Hospital, which lacks essential supplies and electricity. Tragically, medical sources informed Al Jazeera that at least five staff members were burned alive during the assault.
Footage circulating on local media showed thick smoke rising from the Kamal Adwan Hospital complex as the destruction unfolded.
Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the hospital’s director, along with dozens of staff members, has been detained by Israeli forces. The Palestinian Civil Defence also reported the arrest of its northern Gaza director, Ahmed Hassan al-Kahlout.
The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that the raid has put the last major health facility in North Gaza out of service. The WHO expressed deep concern for the safety of 60 health workers and 25 critically ill patients, including those on ventilators, who reportedly remain in the hospital. Patients in moderate to severe condition were forced to evacuate to the non-functional Indonesian Hospital.
This attack is part of a pattern of escalating restrictions on access for humanitarian organizations and repeated assaults on medical facilities since early October. The WHO has condemned the systematic dismantling of Gaza’s health system, describing it as a “death sentence for tens of thousands of Palestinians in need of health care.”
The ongoing conflict has resulted in a staggering toll on Palestinian lives. Gaza’s Ministry of Health reports at least 45,399 Palestinians killed and over 107,940 wounded since the war began. The actual numbers are likely higher, with an estimated 11,000 people still unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of destroyed homes across Gaza.
As international concern grows, calls for an immediate ceasefire and unrestricted humanitarian access to Gaza continue to intensify. The destruction of Kamal Adwan Hospital marks a critical point in the ongoing crisis, further compromising the already strained healthcare system in Gaza’s northern region and exacerbating the dire humanitarian situation.
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