Daijiworld Media Network - Gaza

Gaza, May 18: The northern region of the Gaza Strip has been left without a single operational hospital as of Sunday, following an intense Israeli military siege, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

In a statement, the ministry said all public hospitals in North Gaza are now ‘out of service’ after Israeli forces encircled the Indonesian hospital, the last remaining medical facility in the area.

“The Israeli occupation has intensified its siege with heavy fire around the Indonesian hospital and its surroundings, preventing the arrival of patients, medical staff, and supplies effectively forcing the hospital out of service,” the ministry told AFP.

The development comes as Israel expands its military offensive across Gaza under a new operation named ‘Gideon’s Chariots’, which aims to seize more territory, displace residents to southern Gaza, and tighten control over aid distribution.

According to AFP reports quoting medics, at least 103 Palestinians were killed in overnight strikes. In the southern city of Khan Younis, 48 people lost their lives, including 18 children and 13 women, as airstrikes hit homes and makeshift shelters, Nasser Hospital spokesperson Weam Fares told AP.

In northern Gaza’s Jabaliya refugee camp, nine members of a single family were killed in one airstrike. Another strike in the same area claimed 10 more lives among them seven children and a woman as per Hamas-run civil defense services.

While the Israeli military has not issued a statement on the strikes, it maintains that Hamas is to blame for civilian casualties as the group operates from densely populated areas.

The ongoing war, now in its 19th month, began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a deadly attack on Israel, killing hundreds and taking hostages. Since then, Israel has continued its offensive with the stated aim of eliminating Hamas and ensuring the release of all hostages though the militant group has resisted demands for disarmament.