Director says northern Gaza hospital faces “constant daily threat” from Israeli strikes
An official at a hospital in northern Gaza is sounding the alarm as it faces Israeli bombardment “from all sides” after being ordered to evacuate the building as ceasefire talks continue.
One of Gaza’s few hospitals still partially functioning is located in an area that has been under intense pressure from the Israeli army for nearly three months. He called for an ambulance after being hit by Israeli fire.
“We are facing a constant daily threat,” Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Advan Hospital, said on Monday. “The bombing continues from all directions, affecting the building, departments and workers.”
The Israeli army did not immediately comment.
Meanwhile, at least 11 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the enclave on Monday, doctors said.
The Palestinians accuse Israel of depopulating northern Gaza to create a buffer zone, which Israel denies.
Israel says its operation is targeting Hamas militants around three communities on the northern edge of the Gaza Strip – Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanun and Jabaliya.
UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said Israeli forces were blocking efforts to deliver much-needed aid to northern Gaza.
“Northern Gaza has been under almost total siege for over two months, raising fears of starvation,” he said.
“Southern Gaza is overcrowded, with the arrival of winter creating dire living conditions and even greater humanitarian needs.”
Gaps in the ceasefire agreement are narrowing
Gaps between Israel and Hamas over a possible Gaza ceasefire have narrowed, though key differences remain unresolved, Israeli and Palestinian officials said Monday.
A new offer by mediators Egypt, Qatar and the United States to end the fighting and free Israeli and foreign hostages gained momentum this month, although no progress has yet been made.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that progress had been made in ongoing hostage talks with Hamas in Gaza, but he did not know how long it would take to see results.
Talks between Israel and Hamas to broker a cease-fire and hostage-release deal have resumed in Cairo, and sources close to the talks say a deal could be signed in the coming days. Palestinians in southern Gaza say they hope this round of talks will end the war and allow life to begin again.
In a speech to Israel’s Knesset, Netanyahu said Israel had made “great gains” militarily on several fronts and that military pressure on Hamas had led its leaders to soften their previous demands.
Among the statues of the opposition members, the prime minister said that Israel has strengthened its position as a “regional power”.
A Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations said that although some tensions have been resolved, the identity of some of the Palestinian prisoners to be released by Israel in exchange for hostages and the exact deployment of Israeli soldiers to Gaza have not yet been agreed upon.
The duration of the ceasefire has been a major issue in several rounds of failed negotiations. Hamas wants the war to end, and Israel wants an end to Hamas’ rule in Gaza.
“The issue of a complete cessation of hostilities has not yet been resolved,” said a Palestinian official.
The war was caused by the attack of Hamas on the south of Israel on October 7, 2023, according to the information of Israel, 1200 people were killed and 251 people were taken hostage in Gaza.
Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed more than 45,200 Palestinians, according to health officials in the Hamas-ruled enclave. Most of the population of 2.3 million have been displaced and most of Gaza has been reduced to ruins.
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