Israeli army intensifies attacks on hospitals in northern Gaza

Troops evict patients from Indonesian Hospital and detonate explosives outside Kamal Adwan

Fire burn outside Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza following attacks by the Israeli military on December 18. Reuters

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The Israeli army intensified attacks on the health system in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, where troops evicted patients from the Indonesian Hospital, the health ministry in the Palestinian enclave said.

Patients from the Indonesian Hospital, one of the few centres that are at least partially functioning, moved south towards Gaza city, some of them on foot, after troops forced entry on Tuesday morning, official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported, quoting witnesses.

The Indonesian Hospital is one of three still functioning in northern Gaza, an area that has been under heavy Israeli military pressure for nearly three months. Israel said its operations around the towns of Beit Lahia, Beit Hanoun and Jabalia are focused on eliminating Hamas militants.

The health ministry said all departments of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia and its surroundings were being bombed. Wafa reported artillery shelling in the area.

“We appeal to all international and UN institutions and concerned parties to urgently intervene to protect the health system in the Gaza strip in the face of this fierce attack by the Israeli occupation,” the ministry said.

Dr Hossam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan, said military robots approached it on Monday and unloaded boxes of explosives which were then detonated, injuring 20 people including five medical workers.

Israeli military drones had also been dropping explosives on buildings around the hospital since Tuesday morning, resulting in fires, he said.

“Everyone moving inside the hospital is in danger. The drones target any moving person.”

Dr Abu Safiya said the army had its sights on the hospital's electricity generators. There are 65 patients at Kamal Adwan.

“We have appealed to the international community but so far no one promised to intervene and stop the attacks on us,” he said.

The World Health Organisation said it delivered 5,000 litres of fuel and 100 units of blood to the hospital at the weekend. Eight patients were transferred to Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza city.

Israel continued attacks elsewhere in Gaza on Tuesday, killing at least nine people, including a member of the civil emergency service, in four separate strikes, medics said.

The war in Gaza was triggered by Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, in which nearly 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's campaign against Hamas has killed more than 45,300 Palestinians, according to health officials in Gaza, and more that 107,000 injured. Most of the population of 2.3 million population has been displaced and much of Gaza is in ruins.

Unicef said on Tuesday that since the beginning of the war 14,500 children have been reported killed in Gaza. “One child gets killed every hour. These are not numbers. These are lives cut short.”

The latest efforts by mediators Egypt, Qatar and the US to end the fighting and obtain the release of the hostages in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel, has gained momentum this month, although no breakthrough has been reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said progress had been made in hostage negotiations with Hamas but that he did not know how much longer it would take to see the results.

Gaps between Israel and Hamas over a possible Gaza ceasefire have narrowed, according to Israeli and Palestinian officials' remarks on Monday, although crucial differences have yet to be resolved.