Israeli attacks kill 509 Palestinians in hospitals, WHO report says

By Safiye Karabacak

JERUSALEM (AA) - World Health Organization (WHO) released a report that Israel's attacks on healthcare facilities in occupied Palestine territory have resulted in the deaths of 509 Palestinians, including patients and healthcare personnel, and injuries to 447 people.

Israel has carried out 229 attacks on hospitals and healthcare centers in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank since Oct. 7, according to the Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care (SSA) of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Only in the Gaza Strip, 102 attacks on healthcare facilities carried out by Israel until Nov. 5, WHO reported previously.

WHO had called "for the active protection of civilians and health care," it said on X.

There are a total of 34 hospitals in Gaza, with approximately 13 hospitals with a capacity of around 2,000 beds directly managed by the Ministry of Health.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) provides healthcare services to over 70% of the population in the Gaza Strip.

Some healthcare facilities are also managed by government agencies or organizations such as the Palestinian Red Crescent and the Palestinian Medical Relief Society.

In addition to numerous polyclinics and medical centers under the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip, charity organizations also provide essential medical services in residential areas.

- Israel targets hospital surroundings

Many hospitals in northern Gaza have been evacuated, and Israel has bombed the surroundings of some hospitals. Some hospitals had to halt their operations due to damage from the bombardment or a lack of fuel.
On Nov. 5, a group of Israeli doctors issued a statement claiming that Shifa Hospital in the besieged Gaza Strip was a base for "Palestinian armed groups" and called for its bombing.

Previously, a statement signed by 47 rabbis had also been issued, advocating the bombing of Shifa Hospital based on similar allegations.

- Operations of 16 hospitals in the Gaza Strip have ceased

According to the Gaza government's Media Office, as a result of Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip, 16 hospitals have completely ceased their operations, and 18 hospitals are partially functional.

Due to Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip, hospitals that are no longer operational include Turkish Friendship Hospital (the only hospital that treats cancer patients in Gaza), Beit Hanoun Hospital, Al-Wafa Hospital for Specialised Surgery and Medical Rehabilitation, Public Aid Hospital, Friends of the Patient Charitable Hospital, Al-Karama, Haifa Hospital, International Eye Hospital, Psychiatric Hospital, al-Durrah Children's Hospital, Hamad Rehabilitation and Prosthetic Hospital, Dar al-Salaam Charitable Hospital, Al-Yemen al-Saeed Hospital, Saint John Eye Hospital, Al-Hayat Specialist Hospital and Yafa Specialised Medical Hospital.

*Alperen Aktas contributed to this story in Istanbul