Heavy fighting near Gaza’s largest hospital has put it in a “catastrophic situation,” with patients and staff trapped inside, ambulances unable to transport the injured, and life-support systems without power, according to health officials and humanitarian agencies.

According to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), commonly known as Doctors Without Borders, hostilities around Gaza’s largest hospital “have not stopped,” with persistent bombardment prohibiting evacuations and making ambulance travels too perilous.

According to a freelance journalist, the situation is dire, with medics operating by candlelight, food being rationed, and other resources running low.

According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, three newborn babies died after the hospital fell “out of service” during intensive fighting in the area. The facility is said to be encircled on all four sides by Israeli soldiers and is under “complete siege.”

The Israeli army told CNN that it is involved in “ongoing intense fighting” with Hamas near the hospital complex, but it denies shooting at the northern Gaza medical center and rejects claims that it is under siege. Israel has stated that it is in contact with hospital administrators and has offered assistance with evacuations.

CNN has not established whether anyone can exit the hospital complex in the last 24 hours.

Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, Director-General of the Health Ministry, told CNN that two newborns died overnight Friday into Saturday at Al-Shifa Hospital after a shell struck nearby, shutting down the generator that was powering incubators in the neonatal unit. Another person died early Saturday morning.

According to Al-Bursh, doctors were compelled to provide artificial breathing on the 36 other babies in their care by hand. He later told CNN that once the newborn unit ran out of oxygen, the babies were transported to a separate portion of the facility overnight. He claimed the newborns were taken without incubators and were carried by hand to the hospital’s operation rooms, where oxygen supplies were still available.

Dr. Ashraf al-Qidra, a ministry spokesman, claimed he was stuck inside the facility in northern Gaza, which was “out of service” after being repeatedly attacked by Israeli bombardment.

“The intensive care unit, pediatric department, and oxygen devices have stopped working,” al-Qidra stated.

MSF, a medical charity, said it could not reach any of its employees at Al-Shifa Hospital, who had described a “catastrophic situation” inside.

Gaza Hospital In ‘Catastrophic Situation,’ Amid Heavy Fighting Nearby, Health Officials Say

The charity stated in a statement Saturday that “ambulances can no longer move to collect the injured, and non-stop bombardment prevents patients and staff from evacuating.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) also reported losing contact with contacts inside the hospital, describing the situation as “deeply concerning and frightening.”

“WHO is gravely concerned about the safety of health workers, hundreds of sick and injured patients, including babies on life support, and displaced people who remain inside the hospital,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a statement released on Sunday.

As of early Sunday, the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in Gaza reported shelling near the Al-Shifa Hospital, saying that it was endangering patients and displaced persons sheltering inside. CNN is unable to independently verify this claim.

The Israeli army informed CNN that it was involved in “ongoing intense fighting” against Hamas in the vicinity of the hospital but refused to speak further since military activity was still ongoing. It has, however, rejected reports that it was firing on the hospital or that it was under siege.

Gaza Hospital In ‘Catastrophic Situation,’ Amid Heavy Fighting Nearby, Health Officials Say

The IDF earlier stated that Hamas is infiltrating civilian infrastructure and that it will target Hamas “wherever necessary.” It has also accused Hamas of using hospitals as cover, which both Shifa doctors and the terrorist group reject.

Colonel Moshe Tetro, a senior Israeli Defense Ministry official, stated that “there is no shooting at the hospital and no siege.” “The hospital’s east side remains open. Furthermore, [the military] may work with anyone who wishes to leave the hospital safely,” Tetro said.

With a news conference on Saturday, the IDF announced it would assist with the evacuation of babies from the hospital’s pediatric ward on Sunday. “The Shifa Hospital staff has requested that we assist the babies in the pediatric department in getting to a safer hospital tomorrow.” “We will provide the necessary assistance,” stated Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.As a result of the surprise Hamas attacks that killed 1,200 people, Israel has increased its offensive inside Gaza.

According to Palestinian health officials, Israel has been shelling and blockading Gaza, an already impoverished and densely populated territory, since then, killing over 11,000 Palestinians. The attack has heightened fears about Gaza’s healthcare.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Director General, Robert Mardini, said the organization was “shocked and appalled by the images and reports coming from Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza.”

Gaza Hospital In ‘Catastrophic Situation,’ Amid Heavy Fighting Nearby, Health Officials Say

“The unbearably desperate situation for the trapped patients and staff must end.” “Right now,” Mardini wrote on X.

According to Al-Bursh at the health ministry, Al-Shifa Hospital is under “complete siege,” with personnel and patients unable to flee.

According to Al-Bursh, there are still over 400 individuals being treated at the hospital and around 20,000 displaced persons seeking shelter in the hospital complex.

According to CNN, there were around 100 dead bundled in blankets on the ground within the hospital complex.

“We can’t bury them,” he said over the phone to CNN. As he talked, the sound of explosives could be heard.

CNN has been unable to confirm the number of deaths at Al-Shifa Hospital.

Mustafa Sarsour, a freelance journalist based at the hospital, told CNN that the circumstances inside are dreadful.

Gaza Hospital In ‘Catastrophic Situation,’ Amid Heavy Fighting Nearby, Health Officials Say

“The situation is extremely difficult and perilous. After a brief pause, shelling and gunfire resumed, heavily targeting anything that moves,” Sarsour said, adding that medics inside the center were working by candlelight and that food was becoming limited for both physicians and patients.

Because Al-Shifa was inaccessible, persons who had been injured were being transferred to Al-Ahli Hospital, according to Al-Bursh.

Humanitarian organizations have been warning about the situation at Al-Shifa Hospital. The Norwegian Refugee Council’s Middle East director, Angelita Caredda, said in a statement that the organization was “horrified by reports of relentless attacks on Gaza’s hospitals.”

“Patients, including babies, and civilians seeking help are being attacked.” “Waging war around and on hospitals is an affront,” she remarked.

Martin Griffiths, the chief of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, decried attacks on healthcare institutions, writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, that “there can be no justification for acts of war in health care facilities.”

People utilizing and working in Gazan healthcare facilities, according to Griffiths, “must trust that they are places of shelter, not of war.”

Amid the “deeply worrying” situation in Al-Shifa, UNICEF, the UN agency in charge of providing humanitarian relief to children, has appealed for the protection of Gaza’s hospitals.

Gaza Hospital In ‘Catastrophic Situation,’ Amid Heavy Fighting Nearby, Health Officials Say

It also demanded a quick cease-fire in Gaza. UNICEF said in a statement issued early Sunday, “Al Shifa hospital in Gaza is without power, and we are seeing deeply concerning reports of premature babies dying in incubators.”

Other hospitals have been damaged as a result of the war. The head of two institutions reported on Friday that Israeli tanks had surrounded them.

According to a statement from the country’s prime minister, Jordan’s air force deployed parachutes to air-drop medical aid to the Jordanian field hospital in Gaza early Sunday. This is the country’s second air-dropped humanitarian delivery this month.

The operation was carried out in collaboration with the UAE and Qatar to “enhance and develop the hospital’s capabilities and increase the ability of medical personnel to provide health and treatment services to alleviate the burden of the people in the Gaza Strip,” according to a statement.

SOURCE – (CNN)