GAZA: The emergency department of Gaza’s Nasser Hospital was flooded with raw sewage after an Israeli strike damaged nearby infrastructure on Thursday.
The hospital’s director, Dr Atef Al-Hout, said Israeli forces were blocking efforts to repair the broken sewer lines.
“The problem is not inside Nasser Medical Complex.
“The problem is outside, but it is in an area known as the ‘red zone,’ which the municipality or any other institution can’t reach without coordination with the Israeli occupation.
“To be able to resolve this problem, the coordination needs 72 hours, according to what we’ve been told.
“The situation is tragic, and we can’t afford 72 hours. The hospital will collapse,” Reuters reported him saying.
The Israeli military, Reuters also reported, said it looked into the situation but was unaware of the issue.
Israeli airstrikes and relentless bombardment have taken a heavy toll on hospitals in Gaza.
Democracy Now! on Friday reported that health officials in Gaza said Israeli attacks had killed at least 21 people since dawn, as a heatwave compounded the suffering of Palestinians starving under Israel’s blockade.
Among the dead is a 1-and-a-half-year-old Palestinian boy killed when an Israeli strike hit a tent in Gaza City.
Several of the boy’s family members were injured.
The United Nation’s humanitarian office warns the nutritional status of Gaza’s children continues to deteriorate due to Israel’s siege — with almost 13,000 admissions of children for acute malnutrition recorded in July.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
