WHO raises the alarm over escalating healthcare crisis amid new Gaza evacuation orders

GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) today raised the alarm over the escalating healthcare crisis in the war-torn Gaza Strip following new evacuation orders in Gaza City. The WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, warned in an online post: 'There's really no safe corner in Gaza. The latest reports on evacuation orders in Gaza City will further impede delivery of very limited life saving care.' 'Al-Ahli and Patient Friendly hospitals are out of service; patients either self-evacuated, were given early discharge or referred to Kamal Adwan and Indonesian hospitals, which are suffering shortage of fuel, beds and trauma medical supplies,' the WHO chief continued. 'Indonesian Hospital is triple over its capacity. Al-Helou Hospital is within the blocks of the evacuation order but continues to be partially functional. As-Sahaba and Al-Shifa hospitals are in close proximity to the areas under evacuation order but remain functional so far,' he added. He pointed out that six medical points and two primary health care centers are also within the evacuation zones, further straining the healthcare infrastructure. He cautioned that these key hospitals and medical facilities 'could quickly become non-functional due to hostilities in their vicinity or obstruction to access.' WHO reiterated the call for a ceasefire to ensure the delivery of medical aid to those in the desparate pressing need. Meanwhile, WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told a UN press briefing in Geneva that of 36 hospitals in Gaza, only 13 are partially functioning. Jasarevic stressed that patients and medical staff evacuated three hospitals in one week in southern Gaza in fear of intensified military activities that could render the health facilities non-functional or inaccessible. He stated that 'Total capacity at the six partially functional hospitals in southern Gaza - including three in Deir Al Balah and three in Khan Younis - is just 1,334 beds.' He elaborated that out of 11 field hospitals in the Gaza Strip, three have had to te mporarily shut down and four are only partially functioning, 'due to the hostilities in Rafah and reduced access'. Most of the field hospitals in Rafah are relocating to the central area, he added. 'No WHO trucks have passed last week into Gaza since Karem Shalom remains closed," he stressed. Source: Palestine news and Information Agency – WAFA