Escalating Crisis: Israeli Army Evacuates Kamal Adwan Hospital Amid Ongoing Bombardments in Gaza
On Friday, the Israeli army conducted a forced evacuation of the Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza, resulting in reports of fire being set in parts of the building by medical staff. This hospital is one of the last three functioning medical facilities in an area where approximately 75,000 residents remain, despite relentless bombardments from Israeli forces.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, around 350 people were present inside the hospital, including 75 patients and 180 medical staff. Among the sections that were ablaze was the surgery department. The situation escalated when, earlier in the week, hospital officials received an evacuation request from the Israeli army, directing them to transfer patients to the nearby Indonesian hospital, a facility funded by Indonesia which had opened in 2016. However, just hours after the evacuation order, the Indonesian hospital was also emptied.
Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, informed Reuters that evacuating the patients under such circumstances was nearly impossible, especially since there were not enough ambulances available to handle the transport of critically ill individuals, including those in comas and newborns in incubators.
The turmoil surrounding the hospital has intensified following the Israeli army's bombardments in the area. On Thursday evening, Abu Safiya shared that these attacks resulted in the deaths of approximately 50 individuals, including five medical personnel: a pediatrician, a lab technician, a maintenance worker, and two paramedics. The Israeli army has stated that they are currently investigating the incidents leading to these fatalities, but they have not released further details.
Satellite images from Planet Labs captured smoke rising from buildings near the hospital as early as December 22. On Friday morning, the Israeli army evacuated the hospital, claiming once again that it was being utilized by Hamas militants without providing further substantiation of their claims. Eid Sabbah, head of the nursing department at Kamal Adwan, recounted that at 7 am, the Israeli army instructed staff to evacuate patients and personnel to the courtyard within a mere 15 minutes, after which they entered the facility to remove the remaining patients.
The Gaza Ministry of Health reported that as the evacuation unfolded, 25 patients and 60 healthcare workers still remained within the hospital's confines. In a distressing video shared on social media by director Abu Safiya, lab technician Shurooq Saleh Khader Al-Rantisi narrated the harrowing experience of the evacuation and the searches conducted on hospital staff by Israeli soldiers.
In another concerning message broadcasted via Abu Safiya’s social media, an unnamed hospital worker revealed that a fire had erupted in the hospital, warning that some patients were left without oxygen and could perish at any moment.
The fates of the evacuated individuals remain unclear, as the Israeli army did not communicate details regarding their relocation on Friday. Reports indicated that some ambulances were making intermittent trips to the Indonesian hospital to transport a few patients there. However, Abu Safiya had expressed concerns days prior that following the army's attack on Tuesday, the Indonesian hospital was in a worse condition than Kamal Adwan.
The continuously deteriorating situation for medical facilities in Gaza highlights an alarming humanitarian crisis, sparking urgent calls for international oversight and humanitarian assistance in the region.
Related Sources: