As the ceasefire continues and thousands of people return to what is left of their homes, patients have once again started arriving at Al-Awda Hospital, the last functioning hospital in northern Gaza.
For more than three months, people in the north of Gaza have been trapped under intense siege, unable to move in the streets and access the hospital for fear of being struck by the Israeli military. Now, with people finally able to move around safely, the hospital has received an influx of injured patients, as well as a growing number of bodies recovered from destroyed houses and streets in the area. Across Gaza, an estimated 10,000 people are missing and presumed dead under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Civil Defence service.
Dr Mohammed Salha, acting director of Al-Awda Hospital, which is run by ActionAid’s partner Al-Awda, said: “Today was between joy and sadness. Everyone is happy that the truce and the ceasefire has come into effect and everyone has started to move. Many citizens from Gaza City came to the northern Gaza Strip.
“The sad aspect is related to the large number of injuries that arrived at the hospital this morning. More than 100 injuries arrived and more than 25 martyrs were pulled out of their homes and from the streets. And there are hundreds of martyrs still...These martyrs are only from the hospital's vicinity. Some of their families brought their remains.”
Al-Awda Hospital, which is the only hospital still functioning in the north of Gaza after the Kamal Adwan and Indonesian hospitals were put out of action, needs vital medical supplies, equipment and fuel so it can continue to provide its life-saving services, which include maternity care.
Dr Salha continued: “Things are going in a good direction. We are now renovating the hospital and bringing in some crews so that we can provide services, as we are now...We hope that we will be ready and prepared to provide health services to the citizens in the northern Gaza Strip.”
Across Gaza, as the full scale of the devastation wreaked by 15 months of war becomes apparent, ActionAid’s colleagues and partners say there is an urgent need for more aid to address the dire humanitarian need – from nutritious food, clean water and medicines, to tents and shelter items for people whose homes have been reduced to rubble.
In recent days, our partner organisations have been continuing their emergency response, including by distributing vital dignity kits – which include essentials such as period products and soap – and winterisation kits – which include blankets and warm clothes – to the women and girls they support. They are also preparing to ramp up their psychosocial services in the coming days and weeks to help people cope with the mental and emotional toll.
Huge challenges lie ahead. As people begin to pick through the ruins, there is a high risk of danger from unexploded ordnance: the UN estimates there could be as much as 7,500 tonnes of unexploded munitions scattered across the strip. All restrictions on items entering Gaza must be lifted so that essential tools, equipment and reconstruction materials can be brought in, as people begin the enormous task of rebuilding.
Riham Jafari, advocacy and communications coordinator at ActionAid Palestine, said: “Gaza has lost everything, and it needs everything. Food, water, medicines, fuel, shelter items, reconstruction materials and other essentials must be allowed into Gaza immediately, and all land border crossings, including the Rafah crossing, must be reopened.
“The ceasefire does not mark the end of this crisis. Instead, it marks the start of a new chapter in which every single Palestinian in Gaza faces the daunting task of coming to terms with the loss and devastation that 15 months of brutality has wreaked on their lives. It must be the first step towards a permanent and lasting ceasefire in Gaza.”
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Riham Jafari, advocacy and communications coordinator at ActionAid Palestine, is available for interview. Please contact the press office at uk.media@actionaid.org or on 07753 973 486 to arrange.