DUBAI, UAE — Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) on Monday urgently demanded governments to ensure an immediate and sustained ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas-led health ministry separately, said that deaths in the Gaza conflict have mounted to 15,899.
MSF UAE’s Executive Director Dr. Khalid El Sheikh highlighted the critical situation, emphasizing the need to address the severe deprivation and violence in Gaza.
MSF reports that Israel’s actions demonstrate a disregard for the protection of Gaza’s medical facilities. Hospitals, often serving as the last refuge in such conflicts, are being destroyed.
“We are witnessing hospitals being turned into morgues and ruins,” said Dr. El Sheikh in a statement.
Medical staff and patients have become casualties, and some doctors face the harrowing decision to leave patients behind due to forcible evacuations, he added.
The northern region of Gaza is facing the most severe impacts, with the health system completely collapsed. Gaza’s health authorities report nearly 16,000 deaths, including a significant number of children. The United Nations has documented the displacement of at least 1.7 million people.
The organization strongly criticizes Israel’s military strategy, asserting that the assault extends beyond Hamas and is impacting all civilians in Gaza. MSF also reports increased violence in the West Bank, with attacks on healthcare and over 200 Palestinian deaths since October 7th, as confirmed by the United Nations.
MSF stresses the urgent need for a sustained ceasefire to halt further civilian deaths and allow the delivery of essential humanitarian aid. They also call for the establishment of an independent mechanism to oversee the flow of humanitarian supplies into Gaza.
In a poignant message, Dr. Mahmoud Abu Nujaila, MSF’s emergency doctor, wrote on a hospital whiteboard in Gaza, “We did what we could. Remember us.” These words reflect the dire situation and the resilience of the medical teams on the ground.
Dr. El Sheikh urges immediate action to preserve humanity and end the ongoing crisis in Gaza. The organization’s appeal emphasizes the critical need for international intervention to halt the violence and support the people of Gaza in this humanitarian crisis.
