Starvation signs appeared in northern Gaza amid Israeli blockade, warns Kamal Adwan Hospital director

By Mohamed Majed

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - The situation in northern Gaza is “catastrophic” as the Israeli blockade on humanitarian needs caused starvation among people, warned the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, one of the few remaining medical centers serving the area.

“The situation in northern Gaza is catastrophic. The blockade persists, and starvation signs are appearing in children and adults due to the lack of essential resources for life,” Hussam Abu Safiya said in a video statement to journalists on Saturday.

“Every day, we lose injured patients due to a lack of resources and an absence of specialized surgical teams,” he added.

The continuous Israeli bombardment has left northern Gaza in a state of “genuine annihilation,” he stressed.

The hospital director called for the urgent establishment of a humanitarian corridor to allow specialized medical personnel, essential medical supplies, and ambulances to reach the wounded.

On Oct. 26, Israeli forces withdrew from Kamal Adwan Hospital after a 24-hour incursion, leaving behind extensive destruction and Palestinian casualties within and outside the facility.

The Israeli army has continued a deadly onslaught in northern Gaza since Oct. 5 to allegedly prevent Hamas from regrouping amid a suffocating siege on the area.

Palestinians, however, accuse Israel of seeking to occupy the area and forcibly displace its residents.

Since then, no humanitarian aid, including food, medicine, and fuel, was allowed by the Israeli army into the area, leaving most of the population there on the verge of imminent starvation.

Tel Aviv has continued a devastating offensive on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, killing over 43,500 Palestinians and rendering the enclave almost uninhabitable.

Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in the blockaded enclave.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi