Mon Dec 30 13:31:05 UTC 2024: ## Israeli Forces Destroy Last Major Hospital in Northern Gaza, Detain Staff and Patients
**GAZA CITY** – Israeli forces have destroyed Kamal Adwan Hospital, the last functioning major healthcare facility in northern Gaza, leaving the region without critical medical services. The hospital, located in Beit Lahiya, was raided early Friday morning after weeks of relentless bombardment.
Hundreds of patients, medical staff, and displaced Palestinians seeking refuge within the hospital were forcibly evacuated and subjected to degrading treatment. According to eyewitness accounts, Israeli soldiers ordered men to strip naked before transporting them to a checkpoint hours away, where they were beaten, interrogated, and given identifying numbers. Women were also subjected to humiliating searches and beatings, including forced removal of head coverings.
Hospital director Dr. Hussam Abu Safia was detained by Israeli forces and remains missing despite international calls for his release from the UN, NGOs, and international health organizations. His pleas for assistance, amidst the weeks-long assault on the hospital, went unanswered.
The attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital follows months of systematic targeting of healthcare infrastructure in Gaza. Witnesses report that Israeli forces bombed the hospital relentlessly, targeting generators and water tanks, even while medical staff desperately tried to provide care. A separate building nearby, housing approximately 50 people including hospital nurses, was also attacked, with survivors unable to reach the bodies of those killed.
The destruction of the hospital leaves northern Gaza with no major medical facility, exacerbating the dire humanitarian crisis already affecting the region following over two months of intense conflict. Survivors, many of whom were injured and displaced from their homes due to previous Israeli attacks, were left abandoned and without care.
The incident is the latest in a long series of attacks on Palestinian hospitals and medical personnel and has drawn condemnation for the cruelty inflicted on vulnerable civilians, and the apparent disregard for international humanitarian law. The international community’s response to the crisis has been criticized for its perceived failure to protect civilians and provide adequate aid to Gaza.
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