DaysofPal- A medical official at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah stated that Israeli occupation forces are using unconventional weapons in the genocide against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, which lead bodies of the victims to vanish.
He noted that among every 10 martyrs, the bodies of four are mostly missing.
Maher al-Shafei, the deputy head of the men’s surgery department at the hospital, described some of the injuries in the central governorate as ‘frightening.’
His account aligns with medical reports from the northern Gaza Strip, which indicate that the Israeli occupation forces are using weapons capable of causing bodies to ‘evaporate.
Regarding the injuries, al-Shafei explained to ‘Palestine Online’ on Sunday that many injured individuals arrive with simultaneous fractures, wounds, and burns across their bodies.
He also noted that some patients are brought to the hospital with certain organs missing.
Al-Shafei recounted that the most recent case he treated was a young man suffering from fractures in his feet, arms, and legs, along with burns and small protrusions resembling tiny nails embedded in various parts of his body.
Al-Shafei, who has worked with the Ministry of Health for 34 years, emphasized that the weapons used by the occupation are entirely unprecedented.
He estimated that 75% of the injured require hospitalization, whether in intensive care, for specialized medical care, or for surgery due to the severity of their injuries, with 30% classified as very serious.
He noted that 40%-50% of the injured require surgical intervention. Since the genocidal war on the Gaza Strip began on October 7, 2023, 107,512 citizens have been injured, and 45,206 have been martyred, most of them children and women, according to the Ministry of Health.
Regarding Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital’s capacity to handle the influx of injured patients, Al-Shafei explained that the hospital initially had 200 beds but now accommodates over 600, far exceeding its capacity.
For example, the men’s surgery department previously had 22 beds, but this number has risen to over 38, with an occupancy rate of 180%.
Al-Shafei stated that the hospital is struggling to manage the overwhelming number of injured, operating at three times its capacity. He emphasized the urgent need for more space, rooms, oxygen, medical equipment, medicines, and resources.
‘Sometimes we are forced to prioritize cases based on urgency, such as those requiring more oxygen,’ he explained. He also highlighted severe shortages of essential medications, including anaesthesia, painkillers, and antibiotics, as well as critical medical supplies like gauze and bandages.
With hundreds of thousands of citizens displaced to Deir al-Balah in the middle of the Strip due to the ongoing war, the strain on Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital—the only hospital in the central governorate—has significantly increased.
The hospital itself has not been spared from bombing, both inside and around its premises. Regarding scheduled surgeries, Al-Shafei stated that they have been halted due to the current situation, with only emergency medical cases, such as appendicitis or intestinal obstructions, being addressed.
He explained that the surgery department at the hospital now performs up to 50 surgeries per day, compared to just 40–50 surgeries per week before the start of the genocidal war.
To improve the health situation, Al-Shafei stressed the urgent need to end the genocide war and establish new hospitals with numerous beds.
Shortlink for this post: https://daysofpalestine.ps/?p=59562
