Dr. Munir Al-Barsh, Director of Health in the Gaza Strip, announced that doctors in local hospitals are now forced to resort to amputation to save the lives of the wounded due to Israel’s current genocide, caused by a shortage of medicines and antibiotics and an increase in cases of infection with drug-resistant microbes.

Amputations are the only option now in Gaza

Al-Barsh explained that the wounded in Gaza face the risk of death not only from direct injuries caused by the Israeli occupation, but also from bacterial infections that have become resistant to antibiotics, stressing that the health crisis has reached a point of no return, with doctors finding themselves faced with two choices: amputation or death.

The health director added that the health sector in Gaza is facing a “full-scale war of extermination,” as the entry of medicines and basic medical supplies continues to be blocked, exacerbating the suffering of the sick and wounded.

Al-Barsh pointed out that Operation “Gideon’s Chariots 2,” carried out by Israeli forces on August 13, left 1,891 martyrs, including 482 children, 174 women, and 75 older people, stressing that these large numbers of casualties and missing persons increase the pressure on hospitals and medical staff.

He noted that the death toll from starvation has now reached 420, including 145 children, reflecting the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip amid the continuing blockade and the prevention of food and medical aid from reaching the area.

Dr. Al-Barsh stressed that the current health situation requires urgent intervention by the international community and humanitarian organizations to provide medicines and medical equipment and protect civilians from an impending humanitarian disaster.

Unprecedented destruction

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has warned that the Gaza Strip is undergoing unprecedented and comprehensive destruction, stressing that “the Strip has become like a barren land lacking the most basic necessities of life, and is becoming increasingly uninhabitable.”

The agency said in a statement that children in Gaza are suffering from severe hunger, while thousands of families are being forcibly displaced under the weight of continuous bombing, adding that civilians are living in a state of constant terror and panic.

The Civil Defense Agency in Gaza said that the residents of Gaza City “are living in extremely harsh conditions under the siege and continuous bombing,” warning that more than a million people inside the city are threatened with death if current Israeli policies continue.

It added that thousands of children are at risk of death due to starvation, lack of basic necessities, and deteriorating health and humanitarian conditions. It accused the Israeli occupation of reaching “a level of blind madness” in its military operations by bombing schools where displaced persons had taken refuge.

Featured image via the Canary

By Alaa Shamali

This post was originally published on Canary.