People mourn as they collect the bodies of Palestinians killed in an airstrike in Khan Younis, Gaza, on December 13. Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images
Several hospitals in Gaza reported a high number of civilian casualties on Wednesday.
Al-Nasser Hospital in the southern Gaza Strip published a list of 45 people killed whose bodies had been brought to the hospital. The hospital frequently receives victims from the town of Khan Younis, where there has been heavy fighting and airstrikes.
Medical staff at Al-Kuwaiti Hospital in Rafah – also in southern Gaza – said 19 bodies had been recovered after two houses in the area were hit by airstrikes. Some were taken to another hospital – Abu Youssef Al-Najjah – in eastern Rafah, along with many injured.
Videos filmed for CNN on Wednesday at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza showed heavy casualties following a reported attack in Deir al Balah.
The videos show ambulances carrying men and women on stretchers and body bags at the hospital entrance.
At the hospital, most of the injured are seen being treated amid chaotic scenes on the floors. Several of the injured have serious injuries to their limbs while medical staff are making efforts to revive others.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it is trying to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza while conducting ground and air operations against Hamas across the Gaza Strip.
“We are hitting the Gaza Strip with great force. Both in the north and in the south,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday in response to a question about whether Israel had reduced airstrikes due to international pressure. “Nobody tells us what to do.”
“There is a clear intention on the part of the Israelis, an intention that they have publicly admitted, that they are doing everything in their power to reduce civilian casualties. And we still see some civilian casualties. So we'll continue to talk to them.” “We're asking them to do everything they can to reduce this,” John Kirby, spokesman for the US National Security Council, told CNN on Wednesday.
US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that Israel was gradually losing global support in its war against Hamas due to the “indiscriminate bombing” in the Gaza Strip.
The impact of the war on Gaza: As tens of thousands more people gather in southern Gaza, the United Nations has called for a humanitarian ceasefire to enable life-saving assistance to children and families.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said nearly 1.3 million displaced people are currently seeking refuge in 155 UNRWA facilities. The average number of internally displaced persons in UNRWA shelters in the central and southern areas of the Gaza Strip is 11,480 – more than four times their capacity.
UNRWA said eight of the 22 UNRWA health centers in the central and southern areas were still operating.
The agency added in its update on Wednesday that “there are an estimated 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza, of whom more than 180 give birth every day.” A total of 188 postnatal and high-risk pregnancy cases were cared for in health centers.”