Gaza's largest functioning hospital was under siege as Israel continued to bombard Gaza on Friday, which left the patients and doctors inside the hospital in a completely helpless state amid chaos as warplanes continued to strike Rafah, which was reportedly the last refuge for Palestinians, reported Reuters.
Naseer Hospital, located in the town of Khan Younis was occupied by Israeli forces after they raided it on Thursday. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, five intensive care patients died due to a lack of oxygen and power outages caused by the attack.
The ministry also stated that the hospital remained without electricity on Friday which put the patients' lives at risk. Israel, on the contrary, said that it repaired one generator and provided another to ensure "all vital systems continued to operate."
Israel stated that it moved into the Naseer hospital as it had received information that Hamas militants were hiding there. The Israeli military detained more than 20 militants in the hospital who were involved in the October 7 attacks on Israel.
However, Hamas denied Israel's claims regarding the presence of militants in the hospital and called the claims "lies aimed to cover up for destroying hospitals." Reuters reported.
Ministry spokesman, Ashraf Al-Qidra said that two pregnant women gave birth "under tough conditions-- no water, no food, and no way of warming them up" in the cold weather.
The ministry also claimed that the Israeli troops forced the women and children into the maternity department which was later turned into a military area. The soldiers also restricted the entry of an aid convoy into the hospital which stopped the delivery of supplies including baby food and water, Reuters reported.
Around 10,000 people were seeking shelter at the Naseer hospital earlier this week, but most of them left in anticipation of the raid or Israel's order to evacuate. The air strike on Rafah launched by Israel, hit two houses killing 10 people and injuring several others.
A victim of one of the attacks by Israel on Rafah said, "Rafah is not safe. Everywhere in the Gaza Strip is a target. Don't say that Rafah is safe. From Beit Hanoun to Rafah, it is all dangerous."
It is an escalating international concern that the ongoing crisis in Gaza could worsen further if the Israeli military storms the Southern border city of Rafa, where more than half of the enclave's people are taking shelter to live safely in case of another major attack, Reuters reported.