'Empty Shell With Human Graves': WHO Says Gaza's Largest Hospital 'Reduced To Ashes' By Israel's Latest Siege

<p><strong>New Delhi:</strong> The World Health Organization (WHO) on Saturday said that Gaza's largest hospital has been decimated by Israel's recent siege, leaving an &ldquo;empty shell&rdquo; with many bodies.</p> <p>Following a two-week military operation, Israeli forces withdrew from Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on Monday. The operation, aimed at targeting Palestinian operatives within the medical complex, left the once-vital institution in ruins.</p> <p>Despite repeated attempts since March 25, it was only on Friday that a WHO-led mission managed to gain access to the hospital. The UN health agency lamented the appalling extent of destruction witnessed during their visit.</p> <p>Taking to X, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote, &ldquo;WHO and partners managed to reach Al-Shifa -- once the backbone of the health system in Gaza, which is now an empty shell with human graves after the latest siege.&rdquo;</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">.<a href="https://twitter.com/WHO?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WHO</a> and partners managed to reach Al-Shifa &mdash; once the backbone of the health system in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Gaza?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Gaza</a>, which is now an empty shell with human graves after the latest siege. The team witnessed at least five dead bodies during the mission. <br /><br />Most of the buildings in the hospital complex&hellip; <a href="https://t.co/jSKVfZkR5f">pic.twitter.com/jSKVfZkR5f</a></p> &mdash; Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrTedros/status/1776617140969168918?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2024</a></blockquote> <p> <script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" async="" charset="utf-8"></script> </p> <p>He said the WHO team saw "at least five dead bodies during the mission".</p> <p>He further said that &ldquo;most of the buildings in the hospital complex are extensively destroyed and the majority of assets damaged or reduced to ashes.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;Even restoring minimal functionality in the short term seems implausible. An in-depth assessment by a team of engineers is needed to determine if the remaining buildings are safe for future use,&rdquo; Ghebreyesus added in his X post.</p> <p>The WHO chief further lamented the fact that the organisation&rsquo;s recent &ldquo;effort to support the revival of basic services at Al-Shifa are now lost, and people are once again deprived of access to lifesaving health care services.&rdquo;</p> <p>Ever since the outbreak of the Israel Gaza war after a surprise attack unleashed by Hamas on October 7 last year, of the 36 hospitals in Gaza, only 10 are currently operational partially, WHO said.</p>

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