UN: Convoy with medicines reaches clinic in Gaza Strip
According to the United Nations, a convoy of medical supplies has reached the Al-Shifa hospital in the Gaza Strip. This is only the second delivery of life-saving supplies to the hospital since the beginning of the Gaza war, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Palestinian Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) announced in the evening.
Although the quantities delivered were welcome, they were nowhere near enough to meet the enormous needs in the Gaza Strip. "The medical conditions in Al-Shifa - the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip and one of the oldest Palestinian health facilities - are catastrophic," the statement said.
The hospital is bursting at the seams. The emergency room and wards are overcrowded. The number of wounded is increasing by the hour, while patients are suffering unnecessary pain as medicines and anesthetics are running out. In addition, tens of thousands of displaced people had sought shelter in the hospital's parking lots and courtyards.
The medical facilities ran out of supplies and fuel. UNRWA and WHO renewed their call for the delivery of fuel to humanitarian organizations in the Gaza Strip. Without fuel, hospitals and other facilities such as desalination plants and bakeries could not function. As a result, even more people would die.
The United Nations has expressed concern over the ongoing conflicts in the Gaza Strip, as the UN and WHO revealed that Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest in the region, is facing critical shortages of medicines and anesthetics due to the restricted supplies. The UN, in an attempt to alleviate the situation, has managed to deliver a convoy of medical supplies to the hospital, but it falls greatly short of meeting the overwhelming needs in the region.
Source: www.dpa.com
