Israel military has brought the war to the front gates of al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza’s biggest hospital complex, where thousands of injured and displaced people are trapped amid ferocious bombardment.
“We stand on the brink of imminent peril,” conveyed Muhammad Abu Salmiya, the director of al-Shifa Hospital, in communication with Al Jazeera from within the besieged facility on Saturday. Operations had to be halted due to a depletion of power and fuel supplies.
Abu Salmiya reported that al-Shifa’s structures are under direct attack, with Israeli snipers targeting anyone moving within the hospital compound. He recounted a tragic incident where a member of the medical crew attempting to reach the incubator to assist newborns was fatally shot. The dire situation resulted in the loss of a baby in the incubator and a young man in the intensive care unit.
Dr. Youssef Abu al-Reesh, Gaza’s Deputy Health Minister currently within al-Shifa Hospital, informed Al Jazeera that all generators are inactive, leaving the hospital without any power sources. With 39 newborns in incubators, the infants are now battling against the threat of death. Israel military has brought
Furthermore, he emphasized the presence of snipers surrounding the compound, restricting the movement of people within. The hospital is engulfed in a perilous environment marked by ferocious gunfire, exemplified by a recent mortar shell hitting the intensive care unit. Blood stains every surface, rendering even the task of cleaning seemingly impossible.