Israel seeks to undermine Palestinian ‘will of resistance’ by attacks on hospitals: Physician
The Israeli attack on al-Shifa Hospital a year ago has had a major impact on Gaza’s healthcare capacity, says physician Mads Gilbert, who has worked in Gaza over the last 20 years, including at al-Shifa Hospital.
Dr Gilbert, who was denied access to Gaza by the Isreali army after October 7 last year, has told Al Jazeera from Tromso, Norway, that “by attacking healthcare [facilities] and ambulances, killing healthcare workers and diminishing capacity, and producing hundreds of thousands of people in need through the bombing and all the diseases [present] imposed by the siege, they are actually undermining the will of resistance in the people”.
Still, Palestinians have reopened the emergency department, three operating rooms and have about 40 doctors and 70 nurses working at al-Shifa, he said, adding that “this willingness to restore function is an amazing, impressive capacity from our Palestinian colleagues in Gaza”.
Gilbert said the only medical solution is for an immediate, lasting ceasefire to be implemented, an immediate opening of Gaza and an end to the siege.
“[It is] costing thousands of lives that we do not report because they are dying from infections, from maltreated or untreated diabetes, from cancer, who cannot be treated because the healthcare system is broken down systematically by Israeli occupation forces.”
Dozens of premeditated murder, field executions documented in northern Gaza: Monitor
Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, a Geneva-based human rights organisation, says it has documented dozens of premeditated murders and field executions in northern Gaza.
As Israeli forces continue to lay siege to the northern part of the enclave for 43 days now, the monitor said it found that among the many crimes committed by Israeli forces, including mass displacement and targeting shelters, it has documented cases of direct killing and extrajudicial executions “without any justification”.
On Wednesday, the monitor documented the killing of Khaled Mustafa Ismail al-Shafei, 58, and his eldest son Ibrahim, 21, who was shot by the Israeli army inside their home in front of their family in the town of Beit Lahiya.
The monitor said that the family members were still suffering from severe nervous shock about the attack, and the bodies of the man and his son remained at the house as neither the family nor rescue crews had been able to reach them.
Euro-Med urged the UN and the international community to intervene and stop the “genocide” in Gaza and the siege in the north.
In north Gaza, Palestinians plead to be evacuated
The northern Gaza Strip has been under siege for more than 40 days.
Israeli soldiers have surrounded and imposed a strict blockade on Palestinians in Beit Lahiya, Jabalia and Beit Hanoon, where Palestinians are unable to evacuate their besieged homes.
We have received many appeals from people in Beit Lahiya who say they’re stuck and need rescuing. They have no food, water or medical aid.
Other than air strikes and continuing artillery shelling, the military has extensively deployed quadcopters that Israeli forces use to fire live ammunition at
Palestinians and kill them in different areas across the Gaza Strip.
They’re using the small drones a lot in the north where people are saying even if they try to move or search for food they’re being shot by those quadcopters.
