Gaza Hospital Attacked

 

See here for essential background: http://hpanwo-hpwa.blogspot.com/2023/10/gaza-hospital-evacuation.html.
The news is reporting that the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza City has suffered a gigantic explosion. It is reported that "hundreds" have been killed. The IDF says that this hospital was not one of its targets, but to me it is incredibly unlikely that this was not the result of Israeli offensive action. (EDIT: This is now seriously been called into question.) They have claimed that Hamas terrorists have established makeshift bases in Gaza hospitals. It is not the purpose of the HPWA blog to discuss the rights and wrongs of what's going on politically in Israel and Gaza now; we're going to focus on the HP's and their duties. The background link below has a wider scope. A spokesman for the Palestinian National Authority has stated that the Gaza hospital infrastructure has now totally collapsed. Water and fuel for emergency generators has run out. A surgeon, Professor Ghassan Abu Sittah, said: "Parts of the hospital are on fire. I don't know whether that is the emergency department. But it's certainly the operating suite, part of the roof has fallen. There is broken glass everywhere." Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUxZFxwwp-Y. From what I've seen, at this point the situation at the damaged hospital is one for the fire brigade, and indeed I have seen videos of firemen entering the premises. Some casualties have been moved to waiting ambulances, but right now the ambulances are the only places they can be treated. There is nothing more we HP's can do at this point. With the breakdown of the infrastructure and the attack on the campuses, probably personnel discipline will also weaken. The surviving staff have their own families and loved ones who need them. I'm afraid I don't fancy the chances much of any patient still left in the hospital. If they were too sick to be evacuated a few days ago, they are unlikely to survive now. The focus must shift to those who have a fighting chance. An Egyptian spokesman claims that the border at Rafah is not closed, but this makes no sense because the bottlenecks of refugees on one side and aid lorries on the other are not moving in either direction. My heart goes out to all those affected by this, in Gaza and Israel.
See here for more information: http://hpanwo-tv.blogspot.com/2023/10/israel-war-livestream.html.