WHO chief concerned over communication outages, heavy bombardments in Gaza

By Gozde Bayar

ANKARA (AA) – The director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO) expressed concern Sunday about communication outages and the heavy Israeli bombardments in Gaza.

“We’re very concerned about reports of another connectivity outage in #Gaza, as well as heavy bombardments,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X.

Without connectivity, people who need immediate medical attention cannot contact hospitals and ambulances, he noted.

He called for all channels of communication to be restored immediately.

Israel carried out more than 100 airstrikes in different parts of Gaza City, including the surroundings of Al-Shifa Hospital, in less than an hour. The attacks took place simultaneously with the complete collapse of all communication and internet services in Gaza.​​​​​​​

Last week, the Israeli army expanded its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip, which has been under relentless airstrikes since the Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise offensive on Oct. 7.

The number of Palestinians killed in Israeli bombardments in the Gaza Strip has risen to 9,770, the Health Ministry in the blockaded enclave announced Sunday.

“The death toll as a result of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7 is 9,770, including 4,800 children and 2,550 women,” the ministry said in a statement.