GAZA HOSPITAL REELING FROM ISRAELI POWER OUTAGE

Sat 07 October 2023:

Mohamed Abu Silmiya, director of Al-Shifa Hospital, has said that Israel cutting off power to the Gaza Strip leaves hospitals and medical facilities in a tight spot as they struggle to treat the flow of casualties from Israel’s ongoing air assault.

Al-Shifa Hospital is the largest in the besieged enclave, and is receiving the highest number of casualties.

“We are doing what we can with whatever we have, but we are facing a real threat, especially that power has been cut, and generators here consume 48,000 litres of fuel per day. We cannot afford to continue operating this way,” Abu Silmiya said.

He said that 200 Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,600 injured, the majority of whom are in critical condition and require ICU treatment, and others who need surgery.

“The Strip has been under tight siege for 17 years. The medical sector has been paying the heaviest price to this siege. We have shortages of medical supplies and equipment, namely those badly needed in the emergency rooms and intensive care units,” Abu Silmiya said.

“The numbers are huge, which cannot be handled by the already-suffering sector. Even before today’s events, we have been warning that medical supplies are in sharp shortage, especially for cancer and dialysis. Patients with chronic diseases are dying due to the absence of medicine,” Abu Silmiya said.

He added that many cannot be treated in the West Bank or abroad because they are being denied access by Israel and because authorities are preventing medical supplies from entering Gaza.