The well being system in Gaza is being destroyed, the pinnacle of the World Health Organisation (WHO) mentioned Sunday as he reiterated requires a ceasefire. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus additionally hailed Gaza’s medical employees who proceed their work underneath more and more dire circumstances.

“The decimation of the Gaza well being system is a tragedy,” he posted on X, formerly Twitter. “We persist in calling for CeasefireNow.” “In the face of fixed insecurity and inflows of wounded sufferers, we see docs, nurses, ambulance drivers and extra proceed striving to avoid wasting lives,” Tedros mentioned.

The UN health agency has long been sounding the alarm about the state of health care since the bloodiest-ever war in Gaza erupted after Hamas’s unprecedented attack inside Israel on October 7. The militants killed about 1,140 people and seized around 250 hostages, 129 of whom are believed to remain captive in Gaza. Israel’s withering military campaign, including massive aerial bombardment, has killed 20,424 people, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

Vast areas of Gaza lie in ruins and its 2.4 million people have endured dire shortages of water, food, fuel and medicine due to an Israeli siege, alleviated only by the limited arrival of aid trucks. “Al-Shifa was once Gaza’s biggest hospital. But relentless hostilities and massive numbers of wounded people have brought its capacities to its knees. Now, it can only deliver the most basic of first aid,” Tedros mentioned.

The provide of 19,200 litres of generator gasoline delivered on Saturday will assist revive very important companies. However, WHO mentioned extra shall be wanted. The world well being physique additionally mentioned that Al-Shifa is offering refuge to 50,000 displaced individuals. “Al-Shifa is a microcosm of the nightmare taking part in out throughout Gaza, the place drastic shortages of medicines, meals, energy, water and – above all – security imperil the inhabitants,” the WHO chief mentioned.

– ‘Unbearable’ –

Of Gaza’s original 36 hospitals, only nine are now partially functional, all of them in the south and all of them overwhelmed. After missions last week to two badly damaged hospitals in the north, Al-Shifa and Al-Ahli, WHO staff described “unbearable” scenes of largely deserted sufferers, together with younger youngsters, begging for meals and water.

WHO warned that whilst healthcare wants soar, solely 38 % of pre-conflict hospital beds remained accessible within the Palestinian territory and solely 30 % of authentic well being workers have been nonetheless working. At the identical time, hospitals, protected underneath worldwide humanitarian legislation, have repeatedly been hit by Israeli strikes for the reason that conflict erupted.

The Israeli navy accuses Hamas of getting tunnels underneath hospitals and utilizing the medical amenities as command centres, a cost denied by the Islamist group. As of December 20, WHO had registered 246 assaults on well being care in Gaza, together with hospitals and ambulances, leading to 582 deaths and 748 accidents.