3:43 p.m. ET, November 1, 2023
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, almost half of Gaza’s hospitals are out of service
By CNN’s Kareem El Damanhoury and Kareem Khadder
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah, 16 of Gaza’s 35 hospitals are out of service due to bombardment and fuel shortages.
The Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, the leading cancer hospital in Gaza, is among the hospitals that have ceased operations, the Health Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
Ramallah-based Palestinian Health Minister Mai al-Kaila said on Wednesday that the lives of 70 cancer patients at the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital were under serious threat, adding that the lives of about 2,000 other cancer patients were also under serious threat. “catastrophic health conditions” due to the conflict.
Hospital director Sobhi Skaik told CNN on Monday that the center was damaged in an Israeli attack. The third floor was hit directly, which caused damage to the oxygen and water supplies, although no one was injured. The Israeli military told CNN in a statement on Tuesday: “The IDF did not attack the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital in the Gaza Strip.” No further information was offered.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health also warned that Gaza’s largest hospital could soon be out of service.
“The Al Shifa Medical Complex will cease operations in less than 24 hours due to running out of fuel,” the ministry said, adding that the area around the hospital has been repeatedly hit by Israeli airstrikes.
The ministry called for a halt to Israeli attacks, which it said would allow the entry of medical supplies and volunteer teams and allow wounded people to leave the strip for treatment.
Meanwhile, Israel claimed that there was fuel in Gaza but that it was under Hamas control.
Israel Defense Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus told CNN last week that Israeli military intelligence estimates that “between 800,000 and perhaps more than a million liters of fuel of various types are stored in the Gaza Strip” under Hamas control. He said some of that fuel had been stored and accused the United Nations and Hamas of also stealing some of it.
CNN cannot independently verify the amount of fuel in Gaza.