“WHO Chief Warns Israel’s Operation in Gaza Strip Could Lead to Bloodshed”

“WHO:” Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to crush remaining Hamas fighters in Rafah, where the majority of Gaza’s population has sought refuge after nearly seven months of conflict.

The Director-General of WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, warned on Friday while announcing emergency plans that the Israeli military incursion in Rafah could lead to “bloodshed” in southern Gaza.

Tedros expressed deep concern that Rafah, amid a full-scale military campaign in Gaza, could witness increased casualties and deaths due to a disrupted healthcare system and weakened infrastructure.

In a statement, WHO announced emergency efforts but cautioned that “the compromised healthcare system will not be able to cope with the expected increase in casualties and deaths due to the military campaign in Rafah.”

According to WHO representatives in Palestinian territories, Rik Peeperkorn told reporters in Geneva, “This emergency plan is a band-aid. It will not prevent an expected rise in casualties and morbidity due to a military campaign.”

WHO reported that most health facilities in the besieged area have been damaged or destroyed amid heavy Israeli airstrikes.

The United Nations health agency stated that out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals, only 12 and 22 primary health facilities are “partially operational.”

The statement emphasized, “Under emergency efforts, WHO and partner health services are working to restore and revive health services.”

It mentioned that three active hospitals in Rafah would be forced to close if the area becomes engulfed in conflict.

Instead, WHO is working to revive the largest hospital in southern Gaza, Nasir Medical Complex in Khan Younis, and establish additional medical sites.

Peeperkorn stated, “The already fragile healthcare system will not be able to cope with the expected devastation caused by a military campaign.”

He warned that a military campaign in Rafah could unleash a new wave of displacement, exacerbate overcrowding, limit access to food, water, and sanitation, and escalate disease outbreaks.

In its statement, WHO urged “immediate and sustained cessation of hostilities and humanitarian access at scale in Gaza and beyond.”

The spokesperson for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, Jens Laerke, said a military campaign in Rafah “could become a cause of mass killing.”

He told reporters, “For agencies already struggling to provide humanitarian aid in Gaza, ground incursion would be a devastating blow.”

“Any ground operation would mean more suffering and death.”

The deadliest Gaza conflict to date began on October 7, 2023, following an unprecedented attack by Palestinian terrorist group Hamas on southern Israel.

According to Israeli official AFP figures, the attack claimed the lives of 1,170 people, mostly civilians.

Militants have also captured nearly 250 people, with Israel estimating 128 remaining in Gaza. The military reports 35 of them dead.

In the area controlled by Hamas, the Ministry of Health reports that over 34,000 people have been killed in Israel’s successive retaliatory military strikes in Gaza, with a majority being women and children.

“WHO:” This article discusses the warning from WHO regarding potential bloodshed and humanitarian crisis in Rafah due to Israel’s military campaign, emphasizing the urgent need for humanitarian access and a cessation of hostilities in Gaza.

“WHO:”

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