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One of Gaza’s largest and last remaining hospitals was rendered non-functional within days after being surrounded and subsequently attacked by the Israeli Defense Forces last week.
A World Health Organization medical team was finally allowed into Nasser Hospital this week, after the IDF had previously barred them from entering the facility to check on patients.
Doctors who looked inside the hospital called it a “death zone.”
“We were shocked by what we saw at the Nasser medical complex,” said Dr. Richard Pieperkorn, WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territories. “There’s waste everywhere. The electricity was working, it wasn’t working. It’s not working. Parts of the hospital are damaged, some are badly damaged.”
The IDF said one of the objectives of operations in and around the hospital in recent days was to keep the hospital functioning. In a video statement, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said, “A key objective defined by our military mission is to ensure that Nasser Hospital continues its vital function of treating patients in Gaza. “We have communicated this in numerous conversations with hospital staff.” We emphasized that there is no obligation for patients or staff to evacuate the hospital. ”
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The Israel Defense Forces said they had received information that hostages kidnapped on October 7 had previously been held there, and searched the hospital. The military also claimed that Hamas was operating from the hospital.
The only evidence the IDF has shared so far is a video after the attack on the hospital that showed medical supplies for the hostages and two vehicles allegedly involved in the October 7 attack.
Nasser Hospital and the surrounding area were flooded with internally displaced people from northern Gaza as the war put increasing pressure on people to flee their homes or risk being killed.
Satellite images from commercial satellite company Planet Labs showed the hospital and surrounding schools filled with temporary construction.
As IDF operations moved south, many people left, but not everyone was able to evacuate, especially patients in critical condition in hospitals.
The hospital eventually came under siege, and its doctors began sharing videos on social media of IDF armored vehicles and bulldozers on the outskirts.
Videos showed multiple attempts by the IDF to evacuate people, apparently using small quadcopters.
Another attempt to evacuate people was also made when IDF prisoners were sent to a hospital facility to order an evacuation.
At least 130 patients and 15 doctors and nurses remain at Nasser Hospital. It is not clear when or how they will be evacuated, but the timing could be important as Israel considers expanding its operations in southern Gaza to the city of Rafah.
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