Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza Strip no longer operating as medical facility: WHO

GAZA: (Web Desk) Al-Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip is no longer operating as a medical facility, World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, citing a concerning rise in patient fatalities.

“Regrettably, the hospital is not functioning as a hospital anymore. The world cannot stand silent while hospitals, which should be safe havens, are transformed into scenes of death, devastation, and despair,” Tedros wrote on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

Emphasising “the dire and perilous” situation at the hospital, he highlighted that for the past three days, the facility has lacked electricity and water and has poor internet connectivity, severely hampering its ability to provide essential care.

“Tragically, the number of patient fatalities has increased significantly,” he said, reiterating his call for a cease-fire in the Palestinian enclave.

Israel has been carrying out relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip — including on hospitals, residences, and houses of worship — since the Palestinian group Hamas launched a cross-border attack on October 7.

Since then, the number of deaths in the ongoing Israeli attacks has surpassed 11,100, including more than 8,000 women and children, the government media office in Gaza said on Sunday.

It was earlier reported that the death toll in Gaza from Israeli strikes climbed to 11,180 since the start of the conflict on October 7.

Out of the total deaths, 4,609 were children and 3,100 were women, with more than 28,000 others injured, media reports citing health authorities in the war-torn Gaza Strip said.

22 hospitals and 49 health centers have ceased operations in Gaza due to Israeli attacks and a shortage of fuel needed to operate power generators, the health authorities added.