Doctors Without Borders (MSF) fears the worst for the population of the Gaza Strip, victims of intense Israeli bombardments since the unprecedented attack by the terrorist group Hamas on Israeli territory on Saturday. Its teams are struggling to move to help the wounded Palestinians. The non-governmental organization fears in particular a shortage of medicines and medical equipment due to the total siege announced by the Israeli government.
“We tried to keep clinics open, but it’s so bombarded that patients have difficulty getting to us,” says in a telephone interview with THE Duty Claire Ha-Duong, MSF’s deputy program manager for Palestine, based in Paris. “People are having difficulty accessing our hospitals. Even ambulances were affected. » An explosion occurred in front of a hospital where MSF works, causing damage and blocking access to the facility, she added.
MSF says it has enough medical stocks at the moment. She donated medicine and equipment to the main hospitals in the Gaza Strip, which are overflowing with wounded. “But the intensity of the bombings is such and the number of victims is such that we fear we will run out quite quickly, and we will have to be able to bring in stock very quickly,” points out Claire Ha-Duong.
According to MSF, “the declaration of war must, under no circumstances, lead to collective punishment of the population in Gaza.” The total siege imposed by Israel could have “catastrophic” effects on the people living in this enclave, the official believes.
“If nothing can get in, can’t get out quickly enough, there’s not going to be any food, water, electricity, fuel to run the generators,” she said. She is also concerned about the safety of some 250 MSF employees and workers expatriated in Palestine. “We don’t know what will happen to them because there is no safe zone. »
The non-governmental organization claims to have offered its help to Israeli hospitals which are also facing an influx of patients. “They didn’t answer us,” says Claire Ha-Duong. Israel has a health system with good capacity and which works extremely well. Every time we offer our help, they don’t need it. » Which is not the case for hospital centers in the Gaza Strip, which have been under blockade since 2007, she recalls.
3,000 injured in Israeli hospitals
According to the Israeli government, nearly 3,000 people have been transported to hospitals across the country since the surprise Hamas attack on Saturday. As of Tuesday evening, the Israeli Ministry of Health counted 535 injured still present in its hospitals, including 1 in critical situation, 105 in serious condition and 262 whose condition was considered “moderate”.
The Sheba Medical Center, Israel’s largest hospital, which is located in Tel Aviv and specializes in trauma, received many injured people from hospitals in the south of the country. It has treated about 200 people so far, according to its deputy general director, Arnon Afek. “The majority of them have already been treated, received their medical discharge or been transferred to rehabilitation,” he indicates in a telephone interview with The duty. But we still have around 80 injured patients, civilians and soldiers, at home. »
According to Arnon Afek, “most” of the wounded treated at Sheba were victims “of terrorist shots, including children”. “We are doing everything we can [pour les soigner]. As they are young, we have great hope that they will survive. »
Despite the high number of injured, the deputy director general assures that the Sheba center is not overwhelmed. The hospital has more than 2,000 beds as well as 10,000 employees, including 1,700 doctors. “We have plenty of beds for all the injured people and we are prepared to take care of anyone who needs it,” he said.
Faced with the Hamas attack, the people of Israel are “united,” according to Arnon Afek, a former director general of the Israeli Ministry of Health. “When someone comes and kills children, it is a real act of terrorism,” he maintains. According to him, Israel is “justified” to protect itself. “There are Palestinian patients who were treated in Sheba [dans le passé]. They are not our enemies. » But terrorists, yes, he concludes.