WHO chief says the enclave’s infrastructure is being destroyed as UN company warns of hovering healthcare wants.
The United Nations estimates that round 50,000 pregnant girls are presently residing in Gaza, with greater than 180 births going down every single day amid the “decimation” of its healthcare system.
In a press release on Sunday, the UN Reduction and Works Company for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) mentioned its docs and midwives “are doing every thing potential to offer look after post-natal and high-risk pregnant girls on the seven operational UNRWA well being centres” – down from 22 earlier than the bloodiest-ever Israeli assault on Gaza started.
Additionally on Sunday, the top of the World Well being Group (WHO) decried the “decimation” of Gaza’s well being system whereas commending well being professionals there for persevering with to work beneath excessive circumstances.
“The decimation of the Gaza well being system is a tragedy,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus posted on X, previously Twitter.
“Within the face of fixed insecurity and inflows of wounded sufferers, we see docs, nurses, ambulance drivers and extra proceed striving to avoid wasting lives,” he added, reiterating requires an instantaneous ceasefire.
The decimation of the #Gaza well being system is a tragedy.
However within the face of fixed insecurity and inflows of wounded sufferers, we see docs, nurses, ambulance drivers and extra proceed striving to avoid wasting lives.@WHO and our well being companions will proceed working aspect by aspect… pic.twitter.com/Lq62KoQI1f
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 24, 2023
The company warned that at the same time as healthcare wants soar, solely 38 p.c of pre-conflict hospital beds remained out there within the Palestinian territory and solely 30 p.c of authentic well being employees had been nonetheless working.
On the identical time, hospitals, protected beneath worldwide humanitarian legislation, have repeatedly been hit by Israeli strikes for the reason that conflict erupted.
As of December 20, the WHO registered 246 Israeli assaults on healthcare infrastructure in Gaza, together with hospitals and ambulances.
Earlier this week, WHO described “insufferable” scenes of largely deserted sufferers begging for meals and water after its groups visited two badly broken hospitals in northern Gaza the place the conflict is the bloodiest.
The UN physique mentioned solely 9 out of 36 hospitals had been partially useful in the entire of the besieged territory – none within the north – as Israel continued to focus on medical services.
Round 80 p.c of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been displaced to southern Gaza, with tens of 1000’s crammed in UN colleges or shielding in opposition to the chilly in makeshift tents.
At the very least 20,424 Palestinians have been killed within the 11-week conflict – 166 prior to now 24 hours, in line with officers in Gaza. Tens of 1000’s are wounded whereas many our bodies stay trapped beneath rubble.