By Nidal al-Mughrabi

CAIRO (Reuters) – Palestinian health officials called on Wednesday for a humanitarian corridor to three hospitals in northern Gaza that nearly collapsed as Israeli troops isolated the area during close two weeks of violent fighting against Hamas.

Doctors at Kamal Adwan, Al-Awda and Indonesian hospitals refused to leave their patients despite evacuation orders issued by the Israeli army at the start of a major offensive in the Jabalia region of northern Gaza there at 12 days.

“We call on the international community, the Red Cross and the World Health Organization, to play their humanitarian role by opening a corridor to our health system and allowing the entry of fuel, medical care, delegations, supplies and food,” Hussam said. Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital.

“We are talking about more than 300 medical staff working at Kamal Adwan Hospital, and we cannot even provide them with a single meal to be able to offer medical services safely.”

Jabalia, home to one of Gaza’s eight historic refugee camps, was cleared early in the war by Israeli troops crossing into northern Gaza, but Hamas fighters have reestablished themselves in the area.

Palestinian health officials said the new Israeli offensive killed around 350 Palestinians in and around Jabalia. An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza City on Wednesday killed 13 people, doctors said. In its daily update, Gaza’s health ministry said Israeli military strikes had killed 65 Palestinians in the enclave in the past 24 hours.

The dire humanitarian situation has sparked worldwide concern, with the United States issuing one of its strongest warnings to Israel that it must improve the situation or face possible restrictions on military aid.

The Israeli military says it has killed more than 50 Palestinian fighters in recent days in airstrikes and close-quarters fighting as troops tried to root out Hamas forces operating as guerrillas in the rubble.

He has asked people to evacuate to what he considers safer areas in the south, fueling fears among Palestinians that the campaign aims to permanently evacuate them from northern Gaza as part of a plan to to control the enclave.

Israel denied that the evacuation orders were part of a systematic mine clearance plan, saying they were issued to keep people safe and separate them from militants.

HELP SUPPLIES

The Israeli military denies restricting supplies, saying that since October 1, more than 9,000 tons of humanitarian aid, including food, water, gas, shelter equipment and medical supplies , entered Gaza through various crossing points.

He said some of that aid had been transferred directly to northern Gaza, where the United Nations estimates some 400,000 Palestinians remain.

However, it is unclear how much of this amount has benefited those in need in northern Gaza.

“Nothing has entered northern Gaza. People in northern Gaza are starving,” said Hadeel Obeid, a nursing supervisor at the Indonesian hospital, where 28 patients were being treated.

“Our administrative manager only provides one meal to all people, including doctors, nurses, patients and their attendants. It is a small amount, not enough for an adult person,” she said. told Reuters via a messaging app.

Medical supplies are running out due to the daily demands of caring for the injured, she said.

Israel launched the offensive against Hamas after the militant group’s attack on Israel on October 7, in which 1,200 people were killed and around 250 taken hostage in Gaza, according to Israeli counts. More than 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in the offensive so far, according to Gaza health authorities.

(Reporting and writing by Nidal al-Mughrabi; editing by Ros Russell)