WHO Loses Contact with Hospital in Northern Gaza Amid Israeli Military Operations
On Friday, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced that the organization had lost communication with the staff at one of the last operational hospitals in northern Gaza. This troubling development follows reports from health officials in the region indicating that Israeli troops had conducted a raid on the facility.
The Israeli military, however, stated simply that it was “operating in the area” around the hospital. According to the Gaza health ministry, Israeli forces stormed Kamal Adwan Hospital, claiming they were “detaining hundreds of patients, medical personnel, and individuals who had been displaced.” By Friday evening, the health ministry reported that the situation within the hospital was “alarmingly deteriorating” as Israeli troops searched the premises and fired shots, inciting panic among the approximately 600 people sheltering inside.
Tragically, the health ministry reported that two children in the intensive care unit died after the hospital’s generators failed, leading to a critical loss of power. The Israeli military’s statements did not address these claims directly, but instead asserted that their operations were informed by intelligence suggesting the presence of “terrorists and terrorist infrastructure” in the vicinity.
In his statement, Ghebreyesus expressed grave concern over the loss of contact with the hospital, especially given the vulnerable patients and individuals seeking refuge there. He emphasized the urgency of the situation on social media platform X, noting, “This is deeply disturbing given the number of patients being served and people sheltering there.”
The Kamal Adwan Hospital has a history of conflict, having been besieged and raided by Israeli forces in December of the previous year, resulting in the detention of its director. Earlier this month, the Gaza health ministry reported that this hospital was one of three facilities ordered to evacuate amidst a new Israeli offensive aimed at what it described as a resurgence of Hamas.
On a more positive note, Ghebreyesus revealed that WHO staff had successfully escorted 23 patients and 26 caregivers to a different hospital in the territory just the night before. The Israeli military played a role in coordinating this humanitarian effort, according to COGAT, the Israeli governmental agency responsible for policy in Gaza. Recently, the Israeli military also stated that it had facilitated “the evacuation of patients from the area while maintaining emergency services” in the weeks leading up to these events.
