The freezing of US aid caused a deficit of the World Health Organization of $ 46 million that it intended to use to evacuate patients with serious diseases from Gaza and rebuild the affected hospitals in the coastal sector, according to a representative of the organization on Tuesday.
Rick Biberkorn, coordinator of the World Health Organization for the region, said during a press conference through a video link from the Gaza Strip, that operations can currently be funded through funds from other donors.
But he added that he hoped to re -launch American funding.
Last January, US President Donald Trump ordered the suspension of humanitarian aid, and said that each of the expenses would be reviewed to determine whether or not he served American interests.
Biebercorn explained that since February 1, 889 patients suffering from serious diseases from the Gaza Strip were evacuated, including 335 children, but thousands of others are still waiting for help they could not receive there.
He called on Israel to allow the transfer of patients to hospitals in East Jerusalem or the occupied West Bank, which was possible before the war.
Baybercorn also submitted an update on polio vaccination campaign in the Gaza Strip, indicating that it is going well. He added that 92% of 591 thousand under the age of ten have been vaccinated so far.
The campaign was launched after the discovery of the polio virus in sewage water last year. At that time, about 7,000 children were unable to receive the vaccine due to the Israeli aggression on Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society has opened a 54 -bed hospital in Gaza City, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The hospital has a intensive care unit and two operating rooms, and it can provide care for newborn children.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent said that patients arrived at the hospital in the early hours of Tuesday morning.