GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Monday said that the Israeli army had told the UN health body to vacate an aid warehouse in southern Gaza before the start of ground operations in the area.
Tedros Adhanom, in a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter said the WHO received notification from the Israel Defense Forces that the UN health body should remove its supplies from a medical warehouse in southern Gaza within 24 hours, as ground operations will put it out of service.
Today, @WHO received notification from the Israel Defense Forces that we should remove our supplies from our medical warehouse in southern Gaza within 24 hours, as ground operations will put it beyond use.
We appeal to #Israel to withdraw the order, and take every possible…
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 4, 2023
He further appealed to Israel to withdraw the order and take every step to protect civilians.
Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Friday after the week-long humanitarian truce between Israel and Hamas ended.
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The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric, who arrived in the war-torn Gaza Strip, expressing deep concern over the “intolerable” human suffering in the region.
Spoljaric called for the protection of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, highlighting the lack of safe places for civilians amid ongoing Israeli bombardments.
Since October 7, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reported a staggering toll of 16,000 Palestinians killed, including over 6,500 children and more than 4,000 women, with an additional 41,136 wounded.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army launched a major military move by deploying dozens of tanks into southern Gaza, intensifying its brutal actions in the besieged Palestinian territory. This move comes despite growing global concern over the increasing number of Palestinian civilian casualties due to Israeli military bombardments.
Conflict displaces 1.8 million people in Gaza
The conflict has left an estimated 1.8 million people displaced in Gaza, representing three-quarters of the population. The Israeli military reported conducting around 10,000 airstrikes, while more than 11,500 rockets were fired at Israel since the conflict began.
The Israeli air and ground strikes have also caused extensive damage to buildings, including hospitals, mosques, and churches.
The dire situation in Gaza is compounded by an Israeli blockade, severing the region from essential supplies such as fuel, electricity, and water. Aid deliveries to Gaza have also reached to a minimum.
