Last functioning hospital in northern Gaza faces closure amid fuel shortage

GAZA CITY, Palestine

The only functioning hospital in the northern Gaza Strip is at risk of halting operations amid a fuel shortage, according to its director on Wednesday.

“Kamal Adwan Hospital will be out of service today as fuel has run out,” Hossam Abu Safiya, the hospital’s director, told a press conference.

He said several patients, including four children, had lost their lives at the facility due to a lack of food, medicine and fuel.

“Thousands will be deprived of medical service if the hospital stopped,” Abu Safiya warned.

“All surgeries have already stopped completely at the hospital,” he added.

Israel has imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

On Sunday, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) warned of an imminent famine in Gaza as aid agencies struggle to deliver food to the north of the enclave.

Last week, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that a rise in malnutrition among children and pregnant and breastfeeding women in Gaza poses grave threats to their health.

Israel has launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip following a Hamas attack on Oct. 7. The ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed 29,954 and injured over 70,000 with mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio