From the Liveblog of
Friday, January 12, 2024
WHO chief says Shifa hospital resumes partial services after weeks of war
Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip, has partially reestablished services, the World Health Organization says, after reaching the facility for the first time in over two weeks.
The UN health agency says it and its partners reached the יospital in the north of the Gaza Strip on Thursday, delivering desperately needed fuel and medical supplies.
“The team reported that Al-Shifa, previously Gaza’s premier hospital, has (partially) reestablished services,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus writes on X, formerly Twitter.
The hospital now has 60 medical staff, a surgical and medical ward with 40 beds, an emergency department, four operating theatres, basic emergency obstetric and gynecologic services, he says, as well as limited laboratory and radiology services.
After more than two weeks, @WHO team and partners were able to reach Al-Shifa hospital in northern #Gaza today and deliver 9300 litres of fuel and medical supplies to cover 1000 trauma and 100 kidney dialysis patients.
The team reported that Al-Shifa, previously Gaza's premier… pic.twitter.com/D6u4qhTwLT
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) January 11, 2024
Earlier this month the US assessed that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad had used the hospital to command forces and hold some hostages but largely evacuated the complex before Israeli troops entered it.
