The World Health Organization has reported that Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City has been reduced to a mere empty shell after the recent Israeli siege. The majority of its buildings were either destroyed or suffered significant damage, and most equipment is now unusable or turned to ash.
According to the WHO’s assessment yesterday, described as highly complex, the hospital has been completely incapacitated, drastically reducing the availability of life-saving medical care in Gaza.
Reports indicate that restoring the hospital’s operational capability in the short term appears unrealistic, necessitating substantial efforts to assess and remove unexploded ordnance to ensure the safety and accessibility of partners bringing in equipment and supplies.
The organization noted that the emergency, surgery, and maternity departments suffered extensive damage due to explosives and fires. At least 115 beds in the emergency department were burned, 14 incubators in the neonatal intensive care unit were destroyed, and the hospital’s oxygen plant was demolished.
This leaves Kamal Adwan Hospital as the sole producer of medical oxygen in northern Gaza Strip.
The WHO called for a comprehensive additional assessment of vital equipment functioning, noting that this situation has left northern Gaza without CT scanning capabilities and with reduced laboratory capacity, significantly limiting diagnostic efficiency.
The WHO report highlighted that patients were held in dire conditions during the siege, suffering from acute shortages of food, water, healthcare, and hygiene. This led to the death of at least 20 patients due to lack of care and restricted movement allowed for healthcare workers.
Under these circumstances, the World Health Organization has called for unimpeded access to humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, a ceasefire, and urged for the opening of more land crossings to allow safer access to and throughout Gaza.
