No evacuation order given before Kamal Adwan Hospital strike, says WHO

One of the last partially functional health centres in northern Gaza was reportedly hit again overnight into Friday by several strikes, leaving four health workers among the casualties and the dead, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).

“All night, there was heavy bombing around the Kamal Adwan Hospital”, said Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, the UN health’s agency Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Speaking from Gaza to journalists in Geneva, he reported that an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tank was seen outside the hospital early in the morning, around 4am, while people were told to move out the health centre. “There was no official evacuation order,” he maintained, only rumours that spread panic. “People started to climb the wall to escape, and this panic attracted IDF fire. There are reports of deaths and arrests.”

The UN health agency official maintained that few aid supplies and emergency health teams have reached Kamal Adwan since the beginning of the Israeli military operation in Gaza's far north early October. This has left the hospital without most supplies, including fuel.

After seven weeks of unsuccessful attempts and denied humanitarian missions, an international Emergency Medical Team (EMT) with basic supplies was finally deployed to Kamal Adwan “less than a week ago”, explained Dr. Peeperkorn. The team comprised two surgeons, two emergency nurses, one gynaecologist and one logistician. The EMT deployment had been denied at least five times in the past few weeks. Their mission was cut short.

“They are just there, and within one week they are gone again. This is not only for me incomprehensible but also incredibly, incredibly sad,” said Dr. Peeperkorn, who added that no surgeons remain at Kamal Adwan Hospital.

Since October 2023, 58 per cent of the 273 WHO-led missions inside Gaza have been either denied, cancelled or impeded.

This has added to the urgent but extremely difficult task of evacuating patients who need medical support. Since 7 Oct 2023 and the start of the war sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel, 5,325 patients have been evacuated from Gaza. Almost 5,000 travelled via the Rafah crossing before its closure last 7 May, including 4,000 children. The UN health agency estimates that at least 12,000 patients across Gaza still need medical evacuation to survive. Only 378 have been evacuated since the closure of Rafah.

At least 44,612 Palestinians have been killed and 105,834 wounded since the beginning of the war on October 7, 2023, according to the Palestinian health authorities. The majority of those killed were women and children.

Ends

Story: “Gaza Kamal Adwan Hospital attack – WHO” – 06 December 2024

Speakers:

• Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory (speaking from Gaza)

TRT: 02’25”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 06 December 2024 - GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
Geneva Press briefing

SHOTLIST

1. Exterior medium shot: UN flag alley.
2. Wide shot of the press conference room.
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory: “There was no official evacuation order.”
4. Medium shot of the press conference room and Dr. Peeperkorn on-screen via Zoom.
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory: “All night, there was heavy bombing around the hospital around Kamal Adwan. Early in the morning, around 4 o’clock, there was an IDF tank seen outside the hospital and the people were kind of informed and were told that everyone had to move outside of the hospital.”
6. Wide shot of the press conference room.
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory: “People started to climb the wall to escape, and this panic attracted IDF fire. There are reports of deaths and also detentions, arrests.”
8. Wide shot of journalists in the press conference room.
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory: “We brought the Emergency Medical Team (EMT) ‘Mercy’ to Kamal Adwan just recently, less than a week ago. And we brought 10,000 litres of fuel, food parcels for patients and staff, blood units etc., including this EMT. And the EMT deployment had been denied for at least five times over the past two weeks.”
10. Wide shot of journalists in the press conference room.
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory: “So they are just there, and now within one week they are gone again. This is not only for me incomprehensible, but also incredibly, incredibly sad.”
12. Medium shot of a technical operator at the back of the press conference room.
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory: “Since 7 Oct 2023, in total, 5,325 patients have been evacuated outside Gaza. Of that, almost 5,000 were evacuated via the Rafah crossing before 7 May, including 4,000 children. We estimate that at least 12,000 patients across Gaza still need medical evacuation to survive.”
14. Various shots of the press conference room.