Over the course of more than 15 months of genocide committed by Israel in Gaza, the health sector was not spared from direct targeting, in addition to the consequences of the siege imposed by the occupation, which added an enormous burden to the shoulders of the Palestinians.
Israel killed a large number of medical personnel by targeting health facilities and arrested others, which led to a severe shortage of medical personnel within the Gaza Strip.
Israeli restrictions also prevented the entry of international medical teams to contribute to alleviating the burden, making the health system in Gaza face the specter of complete collapse.
On Sunday morning, the ceasefire agreement in Gaza entered into force, and its first phase is scheduled to last 42 days, during which negotiations will take place to begin a second and then a third phase, mediated by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States.
official statistics
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has destroyed 34 hospitals out of 38, including government and private hospitals, leaving only 4 hospitals operating at limited capacity despite their damage, amid a severe shortage of medicines and medical equipment, according to the latest statistics from the government media office in Gaza.
The Israeli raids also put 80 health centers completely out of service, in addition to destroying 162 other medical institutions.
Ambulances were not spared from Israeli targeting, as 136 vehicles were destroyed, which led to a major paralysis of the ability of medical teams to respond to emergency situations.
Medical personnel in Gaza were directly targeted, as the government media office documented the martyrdom of 331 health sector workers, including 3 who were executed inside Israeli prisons.
An absolute siege
In this context, spokesman for the Ministry of Health in Gaza, Khalil Al-Dakran, said: “During the Israeli genocide, we were working in very difficult conditions, as the siege was in effect, and we received very large numbers of martyrs and injured people that exceeded the capacity of hospitals in Gaza, which made us work around the clock without leaving.” Facilities.”
Al-Dakran added to Anadolu that the Israeli occupation destroyed most hospitals and put them out of service, in addition to directly targeting health facilities.
He stated that the medical teams did everything in their power to restart the damaged hospitals despite the limited capabilities, and we are working with great effort to restart the hospitals at a minimum, waiting for medical aid to enter to provide basic needs.
He added that the health sector suffers from a severe shortage of personnel as a result of the occupation’s targeting, and that it urgently needs the entry of medical teams from outside Gaza to help alleviate the burden of local crews.
Al-Shifa Hospital
The Israeli army stormed the Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza City for the first time on November 16, 2023, for 10 days, arresting medical personnel and displaced people, killing others, and destroying the contents of the hospital and a number of its buildings.
Between March 18 and early April 2024, there was a second raid on the same hospital, and Israeli forces destroyed and burned its departments, committed massacres inside and around them, and put them completely out of service.
Al-Shifa Complex is affiliated with the Ministry of Health, and is considered the largest health institution in the sector. It was established in 1946 and includes 3 specialized hospitals: obstetrics and gynecology with a nursery department for premature babies, an internal diseases hospital, and a surgery hospital, in addition to the emergency department, intensive care unit, radiology, blood bank, planning, and others.
Patient Friends Hospital
On February 10, 2024, the Israeli army destroyed and burned the Patient’s Friends Hospital during its incursion into Gaza City.
On July 12, 2024, the hospital was again subjected to Israeli air strikes and artillery shells, which led to its destruction and completely out of service.
The hospital was established in 1980 in the Rimal neighborhood in Gaza, and its capacity reached 19 beds, but with the Israeli attacks on Gaza, its capacity was increased to more than 100 beds, according to Palestinian sources.
The hospital is affiliated with the Patient’s Friends Charitable Society, which is a non-profit organization founded in 1980.
Kamal Adwan Hospital
It is located in the town of Beit Lahia, north of the Gaza Strip. In December 2023, the Israeli army destroyed large parts of it, then returned and launched air strikes that destroyed its power generators in May 2024.
In December 2024, the Israeli army stormed the hospital, forcing the medical staff, patients and their companions to evacuate immediately.
During the storming, the hospital witnessed widespread acts of vandalism, and the soldiers burned departments and destroyed others, causing the cessation of medical services. They also arrested its director, Hossam Abu Safia, whose photo of him leaving alone among the rubble received great interaction on social media platforms, among those praising the steadfastness of the human doctor, Others are upset about being let down.
The hospital is the main hospital in the northern Gaza Strip governorate, and it consists of 4 buildings. It includes emergency departments, general reception, pediatric reception, and general surgery, in addition to departments of orthopedics, intensive care, radiology, a laboratory, and a pharmacy.
Al Awda Hospital
It is located in the Tal al-Zaatar area on the outskirts of Jabalia camp in the northern Gaza Strip. In November 2023, the Israeli army besieged it for 18 days and destroyed its upper floors and ambulances.
The army arrested Adnan Al-Barash, Gaza’s most famous surgeon, while he was in the hospital alongside a group of doctors, before the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club (non-governmental) announced Al-Barash’s martyrdom in Israeli prisons in May 2024.
In January 2024, Israeli artillery bombed the hospital and targeted one of its buildings, resulting in damage to many medical equipment.
From October 5, 2024 until the ceasefire on Sunday, the Israeli army imposed a strict siege on the hospital, destroying parts of it and preventing the arrival of medical teams.
Indonesian Hospital
In November 2023, the Israeli army destroyed parts of the hospital, burned a number of its floors and partially put it out of service.
This is the same as the hospital before it, where the Israeli army imposed a strict siege on it during the same period as part of the ethnic cleansing plan it implemented in the northern Gaza Strip.
The government hospital was established in 2014 in the northern Gaza Strip, under the supervision and implementation of the Indonesian Mercy Foundation and funded by donations from the Indonesian people.
Hope Hospital
In February 2024, the Israeli army launched raids on Al-Amal Hospital, affiliated with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, in the city of Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip.
In the same month, Israeli forces stormed the hospital, destroyed parts of it, and arrested and killed a number of its workers.
The hospital was established on 4.5 dunams in 1997. It consists of 5 floors and includes 100 beds.
Nasser Hospital
In February 2024, the Israeli army stormed Nasser Hospital in the southern Gaza Strip, crowded with the wounded, sick, and thousands of displaced people, and destroyed a large number of its medical equipment.
Nasser Hospital is located in the city of Khan Yunis, and is considered the most important in the southern Gaza Strip, with 512 beds.