Humanitarian crisis in Gaza, cannot be allowed to continue, WHO spokesperson

CAIRO – 17 May 2024: World Health Organization spokesperson said, Friday that the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, cannot be allowed to continue.

He added that the health systems, infrastructure, and service facilities in the Gaza Strip must be supported, stressing the necessity of an immediate ceasefire, after the major crisis that Gaza witnessed over the past months, causing civilian suffering and the spread of many diseases.

 “The current conditions in Gaza place great challenges on the shoulders of doctors, and we are in dire need of support for the health sector and relief workers. The quantities of fuel entering Gaza are not sufficient to operate the Strip’s hospitals, and some Gaza hospitals have been completely closed,” WHO spokesperson said.

The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced on Friday that the number of deaths among Palestinians due to Israeli aggression has risen to 35,303, and the number of injured reached 79,261 since the 70th of October 2023.

The Israeli occupation forces committed four massacres, killing dozens of Palestinians, including 31 martyrs who were transported to hospitals and 90 injured within the last 24 hours.

Israeli genocidal war against the Palestinians in the whole Gaza Strip has escalated since May 6 when Israeli forces stormed and occupied the Palestinian city of Rafah amid non-stop shelling on the civilians in the city and other cities across the strip, especially in the Jabalia refugee camp, northern the strip.

On the other side, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement of Hamas (Al-Qassam Brigades) has attacked Israeli forces, injuring and killing a number of them.

The Al-Qassam Brigades announced that their fighters targeted a special zionist force holed up in a building using a TBG shell east of the city of Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, on Friday. Meanwhile, Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades stated on Friday that their fighters were able to bombard an Israeli vehicle position east of the central governorate with heavy caliber mortar shells.