Geneva [Switzerland], October 26: Reports of Israeli troops storming one of the last functioning hospitals in northern Gaza are deeply concerning, while ongoing hostilities are hampering polio vaccination in the area, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Friday.
"Since this morning's reports of a raid of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, we have lost touch with the personnel there," UN News quoted WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as saying on X (formerly Twitter).
"This development is deeply disturbing given the number of patients being served and people sheltering there," he added.
Northern Gaza has been under an intense military operation with thousands of civilians said to be cut off from humanitarian aid and protection, amid dwindling food and other life-sustaining essentials.
Tedros said Kamal Adwan Hospital "has been overflowing with close to 200 patients - a constant stream of horrific trauma cases", and hundreds of displaced people are also seeking shelter there.
Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, described the reports as "very concerning".
The raid occurred a day after WHO and partners managed to reach Kamal Adwan Hospital amid the ongoing hostilities in the north.
Dr. Peeperkorn was on the "complex mission" which lasted for more than 20 hours, he said, speaking from Deir Al-Balah to journalists attending the bi-weekly UN humanitarian briefing in Geneva.
The team transferred 23 patients and 26 caregivers south to Al-Shifa Hospital, located in Gaza City.
They also delivered 10,000 litres of fuel, 180 units of blood, and trauma surgery and alcohol supplies to cover 1,600 interventions to Kamal Adwan.
Al-Shifa also received lab supplies, anaesthesia, medicines and antibiotics were also delivered to Al-Shifa Hospital to cover the health needs of 6,000 people.
Dr. Peeperkorn provided an eyewitness account of what he had seen.
At a checkpoint close to Kamal Adwan, there were "thousands of women and children leaving the area, walking, limping, with their few belongings towards Salah al-Din and, actually, towards Gaza City," he said.
"We saw very few men or adolescent boys," he continued. "We saw men being screened."
At Kamal Adwan, the team "saw mayhem and chaos", he said, noting that during his last visit on 21st and 22nd October, 75 to 100 patients were at the facility.
"Now, there were probably more than 200 patients. The emergency ward was overflowing, and we saw numerous patients being brought in. horrific trauma patients."
Meanwhile, staff are "completely overwhelmed" and "also very much under-equipped to deal with that".
Dr. Peeperkorn noted that Kamal Adwan is one of two hospitals in the north that WHO defined as being "minimum functional". He understood that the other facility, Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, is very isolated and barely functioning.
Source: Emirates News Agency