WHO chief ‘deeply concerned’ as Israel storms a Gaza hospital, lay siege to another

World Health Organization Director-General has said he is “deeply concerned” after Israeli forces stormed one hospital and put another under siege as they advanced deep into western Khan Younis in Gaza.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote in a post on social media on Monday that reports of continuous fighting in the vicinity of Al-Amal Hospital, and Monday raid at Al-Kheir Hospital in Gaza are “deeply worrisome.”

“Not only do they put patients and people seeking safety within these facilities at risk, but they also prevent newly injured people outside the hospitals from being reached and receiving care. This must end,” Tedros added.

On Monday, Israeli tanks and military vehicles advanced into Khan Younis, placed Al-Amal Hospital under siege, and stormed Al-Kheir Hospital, in Gaza’s bloodiest fighting of the new year so far, cutting the wounded off from trauma care, Palestinian officials said.

The incursion comes as Israeli troops advance for the first time, into the Al-Mawasi district near the Mediterranean Coast, west of Khan Younis, the main city in southern Gaza.

After the troops stormed Al-Kheir hospital they arrested medical staff, Gaza Health Ministry spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qudra told Reuters.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said tanks had also surrounded another Khan Younis hospital, al-Amal, headquarters of the rescue agency, which had lost contact with its staff there.

According to Qudra at least 50 people were killed overnight in Khan Younis, and the siege of medical facilities meant dozens of dead and wounded were beyond the reach of rescuers.

“The Israeli occupation is preventing ambulance vehicles from moving to recover bodies of martyrs and the wounded from western Khan Younis,” he said.

Israel kills at least 190 people in Khan Younis in 24 hours

Since October 7, 2023, Israel has killed more than 25,000 people, most of them women and children, in Gaza.

The PRCS on Tuesday also reported that the Israeli forces targeted its headquarters in Khan Younis with artillery shelling and gunfire from Israeli drones, preventing the rescue organization from reaching the wounded.

“Israeli Occupation targets the PRCS’s headquarters in Khan Younis with artillery shelling on the fourth floor, coinciding with intense gunfire from Israeli drones, resulting in injuries among internally displaced individuals who sought safety on our premises,” it said on X.

“We are deeply worried about what is happening around our hospital,” said Tommaso Della Longa, spokesperson for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

According to Gazans, the intensity of the bombardments in southern Gaza since the commencement of the war in October was the most severe, encompassing air, land, and sea attacks.

Israel claims Hamas fighters operate from in and around hospitals, which the Palestinian resistance movement and medical staff reject.

The Israeli military launched an offensive last week to capture Khan Younis, which it now claims is the principal headquarters of the Hamas fighters.

Israeli minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant said on Monday that military operations will not only continue but will be expanded.

The majority of Gaza’s population, of 2.3 million residents, is currently confined to Rafah, located to the south of Khan Younis, crowded into public buildings and makeshift camps, with shelters constructed of plastic sheets tied to wooden frames.

At least 25,295 Gazans have been killed since the war began on October 7, Gaza health authorities said in an update on Monday.

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