In the face of escalating hostilities, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) issues a vital appeal for the safeguarding of medical facilities, patients, and healthcare workers in Gaza. The healthcare system, already strained and precariously low on resources, now stands on the brink, posing a grave threat to the lives of numerous wounded, ill, and displaced individuals.
ICRC teams, engaged in the distribution of critical supplies to medical structures across Gaza, bear witness to increasingly distressing scenes exacerbated by heightened conflict. Hospitals, ambulances, and the civilians, patients, and medical staff are grappling with the severe toll.
William Schomburg, head of ICRC sub-delegation in Gaza, underscores the unbearable destruction facing Gaza’s hospitals, emphasizing the urgent need for an immediate halt to prevent the endangerment of thousands. Even children’s hospitals, such as Al Nasser and Al Rantisi, have not been spared, with the latter forced to cease operations. The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), a crucial partner, is struggling to sustain Al Quds Hospital amid depleting resources and intensifying hostilities.
Al Shifa Medical Complex, already overwhelmed, now serves as a refuge for thousands of displaced families, victims of the month-long conflict. Military operations near hospitals must respect the presence of civilians, protected under international humanitarian law. Attacks on medical facilities and personnel further compound the vulnerabilities of Gaza’s beleaguered healthcare system.
The rules of war are unequivocal, designating hospitals as specially protected facilities. The ICRC urgently calls for the immediate safeguarding of all civilians, including humanitarian and medical personnel. This protection is not merely a legal obligation; it is a moral imperative, essential for preserving human life in these dire circumstances. The healthcare system in Gaza, debilitated after a month of intense fighting, relies on adherence to international humanitarian law to mitigate further devastation.