Hundreds of wounded died at Al-Shifa Hospital due to lack of health care services in Gaza: Health Ministry

By Mustafa Haboush

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – Hundreds of wounded people are losing their lives due to lack of health care services at the Al-Shifa Hospital in the Gaza City, Ministry of Health said Thursday.

The ministry spokesperson, Ashraf Al-Qudra, said that hospitals in the Gaza City and the northern part of the besieged enclave have ceased operations.

On Tuesday, Israeli forces returned to and targeted the Al-Shifa Hospital, as well as a civilian vehicle in front of its gate.

It resulted in killing of 28 Palestinians, with dozens wounded, according to a previous statement from the ministry.

In November, the Israeli forces imposed a strict blockade on the Al-Shifa Hospital, directly targeting patients, war-injured people, medical staff, and displaced people.

The army withdrew from Gaza's largest hospital on Nov. 25, approximately 10 days after its incursion.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since the Hamas attack, killing nearly 20,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring 52,586, according to health authorities in the enclave.

Israeli attacks has left Gaza in ruins with half of the coastal territory's housing stock damaged or destroyed, and nearly 2 million people displaced within the densely populated enclave amid shortages of food and clean water.

Nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack, while more than 130 hostages remain in captivity.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio