Gaza Health Ministry manages to reopen dialysis department at Al-Shifa Hospital

By Mohammad Majid

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - The Health Ministry in Gaza said Monday that it managed to reopen the dialysis department at Al-Shifa Hospital despite the large-scale damage caused by the Israeli army.

"Despite the huge amount of damage caused by the (Israeli) occupation to the (hospital’s) infrastructure...the Health Ministry managed to reopen the dialysis department with exceptional efforts," the ministry said in a statement.

It urged dialysis patients in Gaza City and the northern areas of Gaza to head to Al-Shifa Hospital to receive medical treatment.

On Nov. 24, the Israeli army withdrew from Al-Shifa Hospital after taking control of it for 10 days, during which it destroyed much of the hospital, according to local sources.

The Israeli army carried out search operations throughout the hospital, claiming that the Palestinian group Hamas used it as a command center, an accusation that could not be convincingly proven by the army and was categorically rejected by Hamas.

On Monday evening, Qatar announced the extension of a four-day humanitarian pause in Gaza between Israel and Hamas for an additional two days.

Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

It has since killed at least 14,854 Palestinians, including 6,150 children and more than 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar