THE health ministry in Gaza, reported on Friday that 24 patients at a hospital in conflict-ridden Gaza had succumbed within 48 hours due to power failures, while Israeli forces were conducting searches in the facility for potential Hamas hideouts
This news was released shortly after Israel consented to a US plea to permit two fuel trucks daily into Gaza, in response to a UN alert that the scarcity had stopped aid distributions and exposed people to the threat of famine.
The circumstances were critical at the Al-Shifa hospital, Gaza’s largest, where the Israeli military stated it was conducting a third day of searches for suspected hideouts of militants from Hamas.
Hamas dismisses an Israeli accusation that it operates a command centre at the hospital, where it is estimated that thousands of individuals, including injured patients and premature infants, are present. The hospital also refutes the allegation.
Israel military’s aerial and terrestrial offensive has resulted in approximately 11,500 fatalities, including thousands of children, as reported by Gaza.
“Twenty-four patients… have perished in the past 48 hours” at Al-Shifa hospital “due to the malfunctioning of crucial medical equipment caused by the power blackout”, stated Ashraf al-Qudra, the spokesperson for the Gaza health ministry.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) previously reported that its relief trucks were unable to access Gaza from Egypt for two consecutive days due to a fuel shortage and an almost complete communication shutdown.
UNRWA announced that it would not be able to “organize or oversee humanitarian convoys” from Friday due to the disruption in telecommunications.
“The conditions in Al-Shifa are disastrous” for patients, evacuees, and healthcare providers who are packed inside without power, water, and food, the hospital’s director, Mohammed Abu Salmiya, informed AFP over the phone during a short period of restored communications.
