Gaza’s Health Ministry said Wednesday that Israeli attacks killed at least 38 Palestinians and wounded 203 as the daily US-backed slaughter continues.
The ministry’s figures are based on the number of dead and wounded Palestinians that are brought to hospitals and don’t account for those missing under the rubble or in areas rescuers are unable to access.
Israeli strikes on Wednesday included attacks on the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza, which has come under repeated attack since Israel placed the city under a total siege in early October as part of an ethnic cleansing campaign known as the “general’s plan.”
Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, director of the hospital, said overnight Israeli attacks caused a fire and put the ICU out of service. According to Al Jazeera, there have been 60 days of constant attacks on the hospital.
“The hospital is nonoperational as of its current conditions right now, started by the recent attack on the ICU, which caused a fire to spread. There is a high risk of those inside the hospital losing their life because they’re not getting the necessary, proper medical care,” said Al Jazeera reporter Hani Mahmoud.
The World Health Organization said Wednesday that Israel blocked an international medical team from going to Kamal Adwan. WHO aid meant for the hospital was instead delivered to al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
Israeli strikes also pounded targets elsewhere in Gaza. In Beit Hanoun, another city that’s been under a total siege since early October, at least four Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes. In central Gaza, at least two Palestinians were killed by Israeli attacks on the Nuseirat refugee camp, and another two were killed in the city of Deir el-Balah.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said the latest violence brought its death toll to 45,097 and the number of wounded to 107,244.
In October, a group of American healthcare workers who volunteered in Gaza estimated in an open letter to President Biden that the US-backed Israeli onslaught has killed at least 118,908 Palestinians, a total that includes indirect deaths caused by the Israeli siege. Dr. Feroze Sidhwa, who led the letter, told Antiwar.com in a recent interview that the estimate was the bare minimum they came up with by looking at the available data.
