Update: Israeli incursion in western Khan Younis
This morning Israeli forces expanded their incursion in western Khan Younis, southern Gaza. Tanks advanced and airstrikes and drones fired into an area full of displaced civilians with no prior warning. As they advanced further west, people who have already been displaced multiple times were squeezed into a smaller space closer to the sea.
This latest offensive has seriously impacted operations at two facilities MSF operates in. MSF teams had to suspend activities and evacuate Al Attar clinic today as Israeli tanks and gunfire approached as close as 100 metres away. The military incursion also meant that ambulance movements to Nasser hospital were stopped.
"The quadcopter and the military vehicles stationed near the clinic were firing. Several bullets penetrated the facility. Then, we heard multiple explosions around the clinic, and shrapnel hit the building. We were stuck for over 30 hours, we continued working after a 24-hour shift,” said Rami Abu Anza, MSF Nursing Team Supervisor in Al Attar clinic.
These latest developments are yet another obstacle to an already overwhelmed and only partially functional health system. Today, teams at MSF’s Al Mawasi clinic received two boys who were shot at the Israeli-US militarised distribution site in Rafah. While they were in critical condition, medical teams couldn’t refer them to any nearby hospitals. The ones in the area are either too dangerous to reach or already full.
“The health system here has collapsed; there's no hospital to go to," said MSF’s Dr. Iman Abo Shawish, Senior Medical Doctor in AlMawasi clinic.