\n<\/p>\n
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus\u00a0told journalists the\u00a0Al-Ahli and Patient Friendly Hospitals in northern Gaza\u00a0are the latest facilities unable to function due to\u00a0fighting nearby.<\/p>\n
He said patients from Al-Ahli have been evacuated to the Indonesian\u00a0Hospital\u00a0which is now\u00a0operating at three times its\u00a0capacity.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver\u00a010,000 patients still need medical evacuation<\/strong> for treatment that cannot be provided in Gaza,\u201d he said, stressing that \u201cmultiple evacuation corridors are needed urgently to the West Bank, Egypt and Jordan.\u201d<\/p>\n Tedros noted that\u00a0almost the entire population of Gaza is facing\u00a0high levels of acute food insecurity, with\u00a0nearly one in four at risk of starvation.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile,\u00a0very few supplies are\u00a0entering the enclave,\u00a0and only five\u00a0WHO trucks were allowed\u00a0in last week.<\/p>\n Tedros said more than 34 trucks\u00a0are waiting at the\u00a0El\u00a0Arish crossing\u00a0with Egypt,\u00a0850 pallets of supplies are awaiting collection, and a further 40 trucks are standing at\u00a0Ismailiya, also in Egypt.<\/p>\n He called for restrictions on supplies\u00a0entering Gaza to be lifted\u00a0immediately, saying \u201cthe people of Gaza who have nothing to do with this conflict must not be the ones who pay the price for it.\u201d<\/p>\n People survey the damage after a school was bombarded in central Gaza.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The WHO\u00a0Director for the Eastern Mediterranean region,\u00a0Dr. Hanan\u00a0Balkhy,\u00a0also briefed reporters on her\u00a011-day visit to the occupied Palestinian territories, describing\u00a0the situation in Gaza as \u201cvery concerning on both a human and humanitarian level.\u201d<\/p>\n Lack of fuel is compromising\u00a0all health and humanitarian operations there, she said, with running sewage and garbage\u00a0in the\u00a0demolished streets and the smell of fermented waste permeating the air.<\/p>\n \u201cThis\u00a0situation is providing the perfect breeding ground for diseases to spread, leading to an increase in cases of acute watery\u00a0diarrhoea and acute respiratory infections among many others,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cOngoing violence and the breakdown of law and order are devastating an already crippled city<\/strong> and creating an extremely high-risk environment –\u00a0not just for aid workers, but for everyone in Gaza,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n The breakdown of law and order\u00a0also\u00a0makes it\u00a0nearly impossible to manage gender-based violence, exposing displaced Palestinians to\u00a0additional life-\u00a0threatening risks.<\/p>\n Although\u00a0WHO has expanded its medical supply chain for Gaza to respond to the increasing hostilities and soaring needs, much of\u00a0this aid\u00a0remains \u201cstuck on the wrong side of the borders\u201d, she said, echoing Tedros.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd even when supplies do enter the breakdown \u2013\u00a0again, I\u00a0repeat\u00a0–\u00a0of law and order makes it challenging for our teams to deliver them to hospitals that urgently need them,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Dr.\u00a0Balkhy\u00a0also spoke about her visit to the IMC\u00a0Field\u00a0Hospital in Deir Al-Balah\u00a0in central Gaza,\u00a0which has\u00a0been\u00a0relocated twice and tripled its\u00a0capacity over the past few months.\u00a0<\/p>\n She met a severely malnourished\u00a0seven-year-old\u00a0girl who had been evacuated from the north three months ago and is\u00a0among the\u00a010,000 patients\u00a0awaiting further evacuation outside Gaza\u00a0so they can receive specialized care for conditions such as\u00a0trauma injuries and chronic diseases.<\/p>\n While in the region,\u00a0the\u00a0senior\u00a0WHO official also\u00a0held meetings with the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territories,\u00a0Muhannad Hadi, and UN Middle East envoy Tor\u00a0Wennesland, and they\u00a0all\u00a0agreed on the need to address the suffering in Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need\u00a0Member\u00a0States to swiftly fulfill their global diplomacy mandate and expedite an immediate truce<\/strong>,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need all borders, including Rafah border, to open and allow fuel, medical supplies and other essential humanitarian aid\u00a0to flow in, and we need those who require medical care to be able to exit.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr.\u00a0Balkhy also travelled\u00a0to\u00a0the West Bank and\u00a0witnessed the rapidly worsening health situation there.<\/p>\n She visited the Jenin General Hospital and\u00a0the clinic run by UN Palestine refugee agency UNRWA,\u00a0and\u00a0learned about\u00a0health workers who were killed or injured in repeated attacks.\u00a0 She also saw extensive damage to infrastructure and medical equipment.<\/p>\n In the face of damaged roads and access restrictions,\u00a0WHO\u00a0and partners, including the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, have set up mobile medical services to reach people at the point of injury, she said.<\/p>\n The UN agency has also supported mass casualty management training and response planning\u00a0at the Jenin General Hospital and six other hospitals in the West Bank.\u00a0<\/p>\nAid stuck at the\u00a0border<\/h2>\n
\u2018Perfect breeding ground for diseases\u2019<\/h2>\n
Breakdown in law and order<\/h2>\n
Open the\u00a0borders<\/h2>\n
West Bank\u00a0attacks\u00a0continue<\/h2>\n