Israel Forces To Empty Indonesian Hospitals In Gaza

JAKARTA - Israeli troops forced the emptying of Indonesian hospitals in northern Gaza. The Indonesian hospital is one of the few hospitals in the Gaza Strip that is still partially functioning.

Israel said military operations around three northern Gaza communities around Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun and Jabalia hospitals targeted Hamas militants.

Palestine accuses Israel of trying to permanently reduce the population of northern Gaza to create a buffer zone, but Israel denies it.

Munir Al-Bursh, Director of the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip, said Israeli soldiers ordered hospital officials to board the hospital on Monday, December 23, before storming the hospital in the early hours of Tuesday and forcing those inside to leave.

He said two other medical facilities in northern Gaza, Al-Awda Hospital and Kamal Adwan, were also often targeted by Israeli forces operating in the area.

The occupation forces have left the three hospitals out of medical services due to repeated attacks that undermined and destroyed part of the hospital, Bursh said in a statement reported by Reuters on Tuesday, December 24.

The Israeli military said it was investigating the report.

Officials at three hospitals have so far rejected Israeli orders to vacate their facilities or evacuate unsupervised patients since the military strike only began on October 5, 2023.

Israel said it had facilitated the delivery of medical supplies, fuel, and the transfer of patients to other hospitals in the enclave during the period in collaboration with international agencies such as the World Health Organization.