Israeli military vehicles have advanced towards the Al-Shifa hospital complex in Gaza, according to Gazan health officials. The hospital is facing dire conditions as fuel, medicine, and food supplies run out for the patients and thousands of people seeking shelter there. The lack of electricity and fuel has resulted in decomposing corpses at the hospital, as well as the inability to keep premature babies warm after removing them from useless incubators.
Doctors and health officials in Gaza have been reporting that patients at Al-Shifa are dying due to the power shortage. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that the power cut has already led to at least 12 deaths, and the top UN aid official for the Palestinian territories reported that three nurses were killed on Monday.
Jihan Miqdad, a chief nurse at Al-Shifa, described the situation as “catastrophic” and stated that patients on life support in the intensive care unit were dying due to the lack of oxygen. The Israeli military did not address specific questions about their actions around the hospital but stated that they are engaged in intense battle against Hamas and that the hospital itself is not included in their current operations.
The hospital, along with other medical centers in Gaza City, has been struggling to maintain operations as Israeli forces close in and supplies of fuel and medicine dwindle. The head of the World Health Organization warned that Al-Shifa is no longer functioning as a hospital and is struggling to provide care without electricity, water, and internet.
Israeli officials claim that Hamas uses hospitals in Gaza as shields for its fighters, including utilizing tunnel networks beneath the hospitals. The Israeli military stated that they delivered fuel to the Shifa Hospital but it remains untouched after Hamas threatened the staff. However, Dr. Nasser Bolbol, the head of Al-Shifa’s neonatal unit, stated that the fuel was left far away from the hospital in a combat zone, and attempts to retrieve it were not guaranteed safety.
Israeli military vehicles reached the gates of the Al-Shifa complex on Monday, including the maternity hospital, according to the Gazan health ministry. The hospital is in a dire situation, with bodies decomposing inside and staff members and displaced people suffering from thirst and hunger. Dr. Bolbol stated that premature babies are at risk without incubators and that the neonatal unit has enough baby formula for only a few more days.
The situation at Al-Shifa is catastrophic, with patients dying and medical staff unable to provide sufficient care. The hospital is under constant shelling and strikes, making it unsafe to remove corpses or for displaced people to leave and find supplies. The Israeli military has not responded to accusations of firing on people trying to leave the hospital.