Palestinian doctors and human rights advocates have denounced the killing of a senior medical official in Gaza by the Israeli army, accusing Israel of systematically attacking the health system in the besieged enclave.
Israel bombed a clinic in Gaza City on Sunday night, killing Hani al-Jaafarawi, Gaza's ambulance and emergency director, and four other people.
The attacked clinic, which offered general health, pediatric and dental services, was also put out of service by the Israeli attack.
“Israeli warplanes bombed the clinic and destroyed its rooms completely,” said Al Jazeera Arab correspondent Ismail Algoul, reporting from Gaza City.
“The blood of the people who were attacked is still on the ground, while now thousands of patients are in danger after the clinic lost its entire facility as a result of the Israeli attack.”
Eyad Zaqout, director of the emergency department at Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir el-Balah, told Al Jazeera on Monday that by killing al-Jaafarawi, Israel removed “a pillar” of the territory's collapsed health system.
“It is clear that Israeli forces are once again attempting to completely destroy the medical and health system in Gaza,” Zaqout said.
“Hani al-Jaafarawi was a pillar of Gaza's health system. He was working hard to [and] serving the sick and injured. She was serving day and night to serve those living in very difficult circumstances in Gaza.”
The Gaza Health Ministry also praised al-Jaafarawi as a role model in his dedication and commitment to medical duty as well as helping sick and injured Palestinians despite the enormous challenges posed by the Israeli offensive.
“The Ministry of Health renews its demands to the international community and global organizations to end the heinous Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip and protect the health system and its workers,” the ministry said in a statement.
He said Israel has killed 500 health workers and another 310 have been detained since the start of the war in Gaza in October.
The Israeli military said Monday that its attack targeted a “Hamas weapons production headquarters” and killed a senior Hamas official responsible for developing the group's combat capabilities.
For its part, the United States said conflicting reports about the attack make it “very difficult to get to the fundamental truth.”
“Obviously, militants should not hide behind civilians; That's how it has been from the beginning. And Israel needs to take every precaution to minimize harm to civilians,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Monday.
missing children
Meanwhile, Israel continued its bombings throughout Gaza. The Health Ministry said Monday that the death toll from the war reached at least 37,626.
Save the Children said Monday that an estimated 21,000 children are missing in Gaza.
“It is almost impossible to collect and verify information under the current conditions in Gaza, but at least 17,000 children are believed to be alone and separated and approximately 4,000 children are likely missing under the rubble, with an unknown number also found in mass graves. ”. the charity said in a statement on Monday.
“Other people have been forcibly 'disappeared', including an unknown number of people detained and transferred out of Gaza, with their families unaware of their whereabouts amid reports of ill-treatment and torture.”
At least seven Palestinians died on Monday in Khan Younis while waiting for much-needed aid, health officials said.
The Palestinian Civil Defense said it recovered the bodies of five Palestinians, including three children and a woman, after an Israeli attack in central Gaza.
Israel has also been advancing deeper into Rafah in southern Gaza, where Israeli army chief Herzi Halevi said the army was close to “wiping out” Hamas.
“We have tremendous achievements in the battle for Rafah… this can be seen by the number of terrorists killed, the volume of infrastructure destroyed, the [destroyed] tunnels and the advance of the underground war, which is very complex,” said Halevi, according to the Jerusalem Post newspaper.
Truce proposal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that “the intense phase of the fight against Hamas is about to end.”
Netanyahu told Israel's Channel 14 that Israel would be open to a “partial” truce with Hamas to secure the release of Israelis held by the group, but would not agree to end the war.
His comments appeared to contradict the US claim that Israel had accepted a proposal from Washington that would lead to a “lasting” ceasefire.
US officials have been emphasizing that Hamas is the party blocking the multi-phase deal, which was unveiled by President Joe Biden in May.
Hamas said Netanyahu's comments show that Israel is not seeking a ceasefire agreement but is seeking to buy time to continue the “war of extermination” against Gaza.
“It is now clear to the world that Netanyahu is the one rejecting and obstructing the deal proposed in Biden's speech and the latest UN Security Council resolution, not Hamas,” said Izzat al-Rishq, a senior official with the group. in a statement on Monday.
The Israeli prime minister appeared to walk back his comments later on Monday, saying his government was “committed to the Israeli proposal, which President Biden has welcomed.”
The US State Department suggested that Netanyahu had made a mistake.
“I think that all of us who speak in public sometimes make mistakes and speak badly, and when we do, we have the obligation to clarify. And we’re glad he did,” Miller said.
