Several staff members, including two nurses, were injured in the strike on the Kuwaiti Field Hospital in Khan Younis according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health and health agencies, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists at the regular news briefing in New York.
The incident follows a separate strike on Sunday on Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City, which had been a key facility treating victims of Israeli airstrikes in the north.
“The latest strikes on hospitals further cripples Gaza’s health care system,” Mr. Dujarric said.
“There are currently very few beds available in hospitals and patients are being accommodated in tents.”
He added that according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO), only 21 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain “just partially functional” and almost all have sustained some damage in the conflict.
He further reported that, according to health partners, there is an urgent need for thousands of blood units for life-saving operations.
Furthermore, there are serious concerns that food warehouses have reached “very low levels” as no aid has entered Gaza in weeks.
Meanwhile, amid the devastation a rare moment of relief came as humanitarians in Gaza successfully installed a backup generator at Kamal Adwan Hospital to power a water system producing 20 cubic metres of clean water per hour.
Mr. Dujarric reiterated the UN’s call on all parties to ensure that civilians are respected and always protected, and that they have the basic necessities to survive.
“All hostages must be released immediately and unconditionally, and a ceasefire must be restored and renewed without delay,” he added.
