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• Mon Apr 14 2025

Conditions at Gaza hospitals 'beyond description' after Israeli attacks, WHO says

15 hours ago Share Save David Gritten BBC News Share Save

EPA The Israeli strike on al-Ahli hospital destroyed its laboratory and damaged its emergency room, according to Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem

The World Health Organization has said conditions at hospitals in Gaza are "beyond description", after a major facility was put out of service by an Israeli air strike. Spokeswoman Dr Margaret Harris told the BBC it was seeing "attack after attack" on hospitals and healthcare workers, and medical supplies were critically low due to Israel's blockade of the territory. On Sunday, staff at al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City said an Israeli strike had destroyed its laboratory and damaged its emergency room. They did not report any direct casualties, but said a child died due to disruption of care. The Israeli military said it hit a "command-and-control centre" used by Hamas to plan attacks.

The hospital is run by the Church of England, whose bishops said they shared "grief, sorrow and outrage" with Palestinians over the attack and called on Israel to provide evidence to support its claim. A ceasefire in Gaza ended when Israel resumed its air and ground campaign four weeks ago, saying that military pressure would force Hamas to release the hostages it is still holding.

Al-Ahli hospital was struck by two missiles around midnight on Sunday - the fifth time it has been hit since the beginning of the war. According to the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem, the two-storey genetic laboratory was demolished and the pharmacy and emergency department buildings were damaged. Surrounding buildings were also damaged, including St Philip's Church. The diocese said the Israel military gave a 20-minute warning to hospital staff and patients to evacuate before the attack. There were no casualties as a result of the strike, but one child who had previously suffered a head injury died as a result of the rushed evacuation process, it added. Later, WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the UN agency had been told by al-Ahli's director that the emergency room, laboratory, emergency room X-ray machines, and the pharmacy were "destroyed". The hospital was forced to move 50 patients to other hospitals, but 40 patients in a critical condition could not be moved, he added. "Hospitals are protected under international humanitarian law. Attacks on health care must stop. Once again we repeat: patients, health workers and hospitals must be protected." The Israeli foreign ministry said it was a "precise strike on a single building that was used by Hamas as a terror command and control centre" and where there was "no medical activity take place". It also stressed that an "early warning" was issued, and that the strike was "carried out while avoiding further damage to the hospital compound, which remained operational for continued medical treatment". Hamas condemned the attack as a "savage crime" and rejected the claim that it was using the facility for military purposes.

Footage shows damage at Gaza City hospital site

On Monday, the Church of England's House of Bishops said in a statement they were "dismayed that hospitals have become battlegrounds in Gaza" and that Israel had "yet to provide clear and compelling evidence to substantiate its claim" that the hospital was being used by Hamas. "Against that backdrop, we call for an independent, thorough and transparent investigation into this attack as well as the alleged misuse of the hospital." The bishops also said that "the extremely limited time given to staff and patients to evacuate the hospital was a further assault on fundamental human rights and basic human dignity". WHO representative Dr Rik Peeperkorn meanwhile told the BBC that al-Ahli was now unable to receive new patients pending repairs, and that this would "heavily impact trauma patients". "Al-Ahli was a key trauma hospital north of Wadi Gaza. It is the hospital with the only functional CT scanner north of Wadi Gaza," he said, referring to the valley that effectively divides the territory in two because it is an Israeli-designated "no-go" area. The charity Medical Aid for Palestinians also quoted an orthopaedic surgeon at al-Ahli as saying that the level of care the hospital could provide to the 40 remaining patients was "quite similar to that of a hostel". "We are unable to perform any surgical procedures, as these patients require laboratory diagnostics, pharmacy support, and emergency referrals in case of complications - all of which have ceased entirely due to the recent attack," Dr Ahmed al-Shurafa said. Dr Harris warned: "We're seeing attack after attack on hospitals, healthcare workers, ambulance workers... the very people that are relied on, who give their all to save lives. But they don't give their all to lose their lives." On 23 March, the Israeli military struck the surgical department of Nasser hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, killing Hamas finance chief Ismail Barhoum and one other person. Hamas said Barhoum was being treated for injuries that he suffered in an earlier Israeli attack. The military denied this, saying he was in the hospital "in order to commit acts of terrorism". That same day, 15 emergency workers, including eight Palestinian Red Crescent paramedics, were shot and killed by Israeli troops in nearby Rafah as they responded to a report of wounded people. The Israeli military said the troops "opened fire due to a perceived threat" and that six of those killed were "Hamas terrorists", without giving evidence. The Red Crescent denied the allegation and accused Israel of a "full-fledged war crime". On Monday, the International Committee of the Red Cross said it had received information that a ninth paramedic who had been missing since the attack was being held "in an Israeli place of detention".

EPA St Philip's Church, which is on the hospital site, was also damaged