A man lifts a placard near tents set up by volunteers and NGO workers along the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing, demanding clearance for an aid convoy to enter the Gaza Strip, on October 19, 2023. (Photo by Kerolos Salah / AFP)
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it was forced to cancel a mission to deliver medical supplies to the northern Gaza Strip on Sunday, as it was unable to obtain security guarantees in light of the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Strip since October 7.
The organization noted that this is the fourth time it has had to cancel a mission to deliver much-needed medical supplies to the Al Awda hospital and the central medicine depot in northern Gaza since December 26.
In this context, Director-General of the WHO Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that they have received worrying reports of increasing hostilities and evacuation orders near Al-Aqsa Hospital in the central Gaza Strip.
He added that more than 600 patients and most of the medical staff were forced to leave the hospital, noting that their whereabouts are currently unknown.
Ghebreyesus added that he was shocked by the extent of the health needs and destruction in northern Gaza, remarking that further delay would lead to other deaths and the suffering of a very large number of people.
Since the start of the Israeli occupation aggression on October 7, the Gaza Strip has witnessed a horrific humanitarian crisis as a result of the occupation cutting off electricity, fuel and water services, in addition to the violent and continuous bombing of various areas of the Strip.
This is happening at a time when many organizations and relief teams confirm that the humanitarian aid that has reached the Strip until now are insufficient compared to the scale of emergency needs.
