5 patients trapped in Al-Shifa Hospital killed: Gaza Health Ministry

GAZA CITY (AA): At least five Palestinian patients at the Al-Shifa Medical Complex died on Saturday due to the absence of health services, food and water as a result of the siege imposed by Israeli forces on the hospital for six days.

“Five wounded people besieged by the occupation were hospitalized in Al-Shifa Medical Complex for the sixth day in a row without water, food, or health services,” the Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip said.

It added that the rest of the patients are in “a very bad condition and worms have begun to come out of their wounds.”

“The besieged medical teams and patients appeal to all UN institutions and the international community to intervene urgently to save their lives,” the ministry said.

Israel first raided Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the territory that houses thousands of patients and displaced people, last November, arguing that Palestinian group Hamas used it as a command center. The latest attack began on Monday.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

More than 32,100 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and over 74,400 injured besides causing mass destruction, displacement and conditions of famine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.