Israeli forces are reported to be forcing the evacuations of both the Indonesian Hospital and Al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza. The Israelis claim, however, that they are not forcing the closure of these two facilities. Israel’s military said that it wasn’t “operating to evacuate” Al-Awda or Indonesian Hospitals, AP reported yesterday. “Messages were sent to reiterate to officials in the health authorities that there is no need to evacuate the hospital,” it said of Indonesian Hospital.
Al Jazeera noted, however, that the Israeli claim ran counter to its own reporting from the Indonesian Hospital. Earlier, its correspondent on the ground said Israeli forces ordered the “immediate” evacuation of the hospital and were conducting intense attacks near the facility. Al Jazeera spoke to someone inside the hospital earlier in the day, who said at least 25 patients, most of them women and children, were still trapped inside the hospital, along with medical staff. They also said Israeli forces had surrounded the hospital.
Meanwhile, human rights groups are warning against the dangers both hospitals face as a result of the Israeli efforts to close them. The destruction of the health system in northern Gaza will be total if Israel is permitted to evacuate the last two remaining operational medical centers, Physicians for Human Rights—Israel (PHRI) said. In a statement on social media, the group said that if the Indonesian Hospital and Al-Awda Hospital are forced to close by Israel’s military, “there will be no medical centres left in northern Gaza.”
