Doctors Without Borders suspends work in Gaza City, citing risk to staff
MSF claimed that the Israeli offensive in Gaza City posed an elevated risk to staff, and that airstrikes and tanks were currently less than half a mile from the organization’s facilities.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) announced on Friday that it had suspended its work in Gaza City, citing risks to its healthcare workers.
MSF claimed that the Israeli offensive in Gaza City posed an elevated risk to staff, and that airstrikes and tanks were currently less than half a mile from the organization’s facilities.
“We have been left with no choice but to stop our activities as our clinics are encircled by Israeli forces,” Jacob Granger, MSF emergency coordinator in Gaza, confirmed.
“This is the last thing we wanted, as the needs in Gaza City are enormous, with the most vulnerable people—infants in neonatal care, those with severe injuries and life-threatening illnesses—unable to move and in grave danger.”
Despite Hamas’s presence in the city and the terror group admitting to holding hostages there, MSF was critical of Israel’s decision to proceed with military intervention in Gaza.
Members of MSF, Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), carry banners and flags during a protest demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, at Martyrs’ Square, downtown Beirut, Lebanon, December 4, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/EMILIE MADI)
Availability of healthcare in the Gaza Strip
MSF noted that hundreds of thousands of Gazans had not yet abided by the IDF’s evacuation orders. Some, the organization claimed, were unable to leave and had no choice but to stay as the war in Gaza City is expected to intensify.
The organization then condemned the lack of medical facilities in the Gaza Strip – claiming there was not a single fully operational hospital. Severe staff shortages, a lack of supplies, and a lack of fuel are reportedly creating critical barriers in civilian healthcare.
MSF also claimed that there is not a single safe space in Gaza, despite the opening of humanitarian corridors in the enclave.
The announcement also stated that MSF intended to continue supporting the “key services” provided by the Hamas-run health ministry, including those at Al-Helou and Al-Shifa hospitals.
MSF claimed last week to have given 3,640 consultations in Gaza City and to have treated 1,655 patients suffering from malnutrition, severe trauma injuries, and burns, as well as pregnant women.
