Al-Rantisi hospital under attack from Israel, photo shows the burning car park (Quds News Network) On the 9th November 2023, Israel attacked Al Rantisi, the children’s hospital in Gaza where haemophiliacs are treated. They may now be unable to...
Al-Rantisi hospital under attack from Israel, photo shows the burning car park
(Quds News Network)
On the 9th November 2023, Israel attacked Al Rantisi, the children’s hospital in Gaza where haemophiliacs are treated. They may now be unable to even reach a hospital due to aerial bombardment and even if they do, there is no guarantee of acessing treatment or safety. The staff are calling out for the international community to protect them! A video posted on Twitter shows flames reaching the hospital building and a car burning fiercely. Quds News reported, “the spokesman of the Health Ministry said the Al Rantisi pediatric hospital was among the ones attacked and that large fires broke out in the basement and other areas of the hospital.“
Back in August 2023, before the current conflict between Israel and Hamas, a photo from Steve Sosebee, Palestine Children’s Relief Fund shows haemophiliacs and staff enjoying a recreational day at Al Rantisi hospital. Haemophilia is a hereditary condition where the blood does not clot properly. Treatment called factor concentrates are required to replace the missing clotting factor and bleeding can be very painful especially in joints such as knees, ankles and elbows and muscles which over the years can lead to arthropathy and restricted movement.
In 2013, Al Qassam, Occupied Palestine website reported,
Jad Taweel, chairman of the board of directors for Palestinian Society for Bleeding Disorders (PSBD) said there are 450 haemophilia patients in Palestine facing severe problems in treatment.”
Taweel pointed in press statement on Saturday to the patients’ inability to afford the high costs of treatment, the high incidence of the condition in the Palestinian territories and the lack of treatment in Palestinian hospitals.
He explained that in case of ordinary bleeding, a patient with haemophilia needs 25 therapeutic units at a cost of up to $2,500 per month.
He added: “Unfortunately, coagulation factors are not available on a regular basis for the treatment of haemophilia patients. There are no specialized care services for these patients, according to international protocols, and this increases the suffering of the patients.”
Although the situation has improved with help from international donors, this does not cover all haemophiliacs and shortages remain. During periods of conflict, supplies are interrupted and hospitals are under threat from bombing and their ability to function and provide the usul services are severely hampered. The following link gives an account of treatment for haemophiliacs when operating normally,
https://www.alquds.com/en/posts/66804?language=he
Hala Borno describes the difficulties for haemophiliacs living in a conflict zone on the following link,
Blood and conflict: managing bleeding disorders in Gaza
The Al Rantisi hospital provides some specialist care to haemophiliacs. This is now collapsing, the following was tweeted from a doctor in Gaza. (Name withheld as doctors and their families are increasing being targeted and coming under attack.)
Al-Rantisi Hospital, the only children’s hospital in the Gaza Strip that deals with chronic diseases for children, children with heart disease, lung fibrosis, cerebral palsy, blood diseases, cirrhosis of the liver, childhood cancer, people with Down syndrome, and many others. Unfortunately, Al- Rantisi is now burning from the bombing.
It is the only children’s hospital that contains a paediatric gastrointestinal endoscope, a paediatric pulmonoscope, an echo device for imaging children’s hearts, a special blood analysis laboratory for children, and other advanced services, which are only found in Al-Rantisi Hospital, and cases from all of the Gaza Strip are referred to it. It’s all burning now…
The main blood bank in Gaza was also targeted, reportedly putting it out of service!
On International Day for Haemophilia, 17th April 2023, al Quds website reported that,
the Palestinian Ministry of Health stated that the number of hemophilia patients in Palestine reached 562, including 178 patients in the Gaza Strip , and 384 patients in the West Bank.
The theme was,
“Access to Treatment for All – Prevention of Bleeding as a Global Standard of Care”, highlighting patients’ suffering and needs and raising the level of community awareness about hemophilia.
AVAAZ describes Gaza as a “walled kindergarten” that is “being bombed to dust” with children making up 42% of Gaza’s population. Kaitlin Hansen from the organization stated,
When the Israeli government ordered a total siege, this is a siege on kids.
It’s boys and girls who are running from the rockets, hiding anywhere to escape the deadly plumes of phosphorus that would burn them to the bone. There are no bomb shelters in Gaza. Food and water have been cut off, and over a million people have been told to flee.
However, when haemophilac children are experiencing a bleed, they may not be able to run away like other children. If they are mobile at all with an agonising untreated bleed into a joint (as treatment may now be unavailable) they will be limping slowly, possibly on crutches or may be immobile having to rely on someone pushing them in a wheelchair or carrying them to find shelter. Even then, as highlighted, Gaza does not have bunkers in which to escape bombardment like Israel.
I raised the issue of apartheid medical treatment of Palestinian haemophiliacs some time ago with Dame Diana Johnson MP who was given her damehood on the back of her campaigning in the UK regarding haemophiliacs infected with HIV and hepatitis C in the 1970s and 80s. At that time plasma used to make factor concentrates was often imported from the US and sourced from high -risk donors such as homosexuals, prisoners, prostitutes, drug users and “skid-row donors”. (My husband Peter and brother in law Stephen died as a result of the Contaminated Blood scandal and my father in law died of a heart attack campaigning for justice, unable to cope with the stress of losing his youngest son.) As Johnson is vice -Chair of Labour Friends of Israel, I asked her why she did not speak up for those experiencing apartheid medical treatment as highlighted in numerous articles on Palestinian haemophiliacs. I was then falsely accused of “antisemitic conspiracy theories” and banned from the email list of the All Party Parliamentary Group, APPG for Haemophilia and Contaminated Blood.
On the 1st November 2023, Human Rights Watch published the following report on the situation for persons with disabilities in a conflict zone (see following link) since then the situation in Gaza has deteriorated dramatically.
Gaza: Israeli Attacks, Blockade Devastating for People with Disabilities
Greater Risks During Strikes, Difficulty Obtaining Necessities, Shelter
https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/11/01/gaza-israeli-attacks-blockade-devastating-people-disabilities
Today, the situation for haemophiliacs in Gaza is dire. The following message was posted on Twitter by a Palestinian doctor on 10th November 2023,
Israel told people inside al-Rantisi children’s hospital to evacuate. They came out waving white flags and then the Israeli military shot at them.
Message from Gaza
Urgent : Tanks are besieging the AL Rantisi Children’s Hospital, trapping medical staff and patients inside. Direct sniping at anyone moving in the area. This is extremely serious
On a video, I could clearly see the children from the hospital waving white flags as they attempted to evacuate, shots could be heard and the youngsters and accompanying staff ran terrified back into the hospital. The woman who shot the video is praying out loud. I don’t know if the evacuation will continue or not. If not, the patients and staff are at risk of being bombed yet again.
The World Federation of Hemophilia had previously released a statement on the 14th October saying it was closely monitoring the situation,
Once we have established that providing help can be done in safety and in an effective manner, the WFH will act quickly. We will work with our national member organizations, with healthcare practitioners, and with other stakeholders from both communities to get help to where it is needed the most. The WFH Humanitarian Aid team is standing by to deliver products as soon as distribution channels open.
https://wfh.org/article/wfh-statement-on-the-israel-palestine-crisis/
It must now be abundanly clear that the situation in Gaza is desperate and without a full ceasefire it will be difficult if not impossible to deliver products. Only limited aid is getting into Gaza and remains at threat of attack with hospitals barely able to function.
Last night other hospitals were attacked and several civilians living in tents in hospital grounds were killed, one man can be seen screaming in a pool of blood with his leg blown off.
Gaza is now in total collapse, there is carpet bombing, hardly any food or water, bakeries bombed, no shelter as many homes are destroyed, the infrastructure is being obliterated. Thousands gather and are now living in hospital corridors as their homes no longer exist but as we have seen, not even a hospital is safe.
There is no fuel either. Dr Mads Gilbert (well known for his past work at Al Shifa hospital during past conflicts) reported that Al -Shifa’s one generator left operating is now running on cooking oil. Medical supplies have run out. There is no oxygen and other treatment facilities without fuel and electricity to keep things going. Children are in agony with 3rd degree burns from the bombings, they have maggots crawling out of facial wounds, women are having caesareans without pain relief, amputations are carried out without anaesthetic. There are flies all over the hospital as with so many people and lack of water its impossible to keep good hygiene and sterility, operations are carried out on the floor as there are no beds left. Disease is breaking out, patients die thirsty. The families of doctors and journalists speaking out on the horrendous conditions are being targeted and their families killed, ambulances and first line responders are also being bombed. There is no heavy equipment to rescue those buried under the rubble of collapsed buildings.
The doctors and all hospital staff from surgeons to caretakers and first line responders continuing to provide what help they can in horrendous conditions are absolute heroes and I thank them for their humanity and outstanding service to their patients. When he could not use his car through lack of fuel, one doctor bought a bike to cycle to those in need and carried it over his head when chambering through the mountains of debris from bombed buildings to reach those who needed medication at home.
Gaza is experiencing collective punishment, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and genocide!
The situation for haemophiliacs is dire. They are in the midst of a conflict zone once again, they may have lost family members, their home, be suffering from injuries (if not already killed) and will now have very limited treatment or no treatment at all. MSF highted that many patients lost their medication under the rubble of homes targeted by Israel. An injury for a haemophiliac in this situation could be catastrophic without treatment as the bleeding won’t stop. Hospital services are increasingly bombed and it is not even safe to evacuate Al-Rantisi hospital.
Middle -East Eye reports,
Israeli army kills 260 Palestinians in 24 hours, death toll tops 11,000
‘If there is a hell on earth today, it’s name is northern Gaza’, says UN official
The last report from Medicins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) stated,
The situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate. Updates from our staff at Al-Shifa hospital
Dr Mohammad Abu Mughaiseb, Deputy Medical Coordinator, shared that “since this morning, many MSF medical staff have stopped working in supported hospitals in #Gaza city because…
“Medical staff were terrified, trying to save their lives and their families. Some of them remain inside the facility, while others are leaving to the South of #Gaza along with displaced people“
Al-Shifa hospital is the main operational health facility in #Gaza city providing emergency and surgical care, with hundreds of patients and civilians inside.
We repeat: Attacks on medical facilities, ambulances, staff and patients MUST STOP!
I am extremely distressed at what I seeing and hearing. The attacks from Israel on hospitals are obscene, horrendous, inhumane and against all international law. The suffering is extreme and there is no time to lose.
“Since the 7th of October,
The World Health Organisation has verified over 250 attacks on health care in Gaza and the West Bank. Last week, WHO documented 5 attacks on 5 hospitals in one day in Gaza.”
In an update on Saturday 11th September, Al Jazeera reported an update on Al Shifa as follows:
‘This is the moment we have been warning the whole world of’
Al Jazeera has spoken to Gaza Deputy Health Minister Dr. Youssef Abu Alreesh, currently inside al-Shifa Hospital as it is takes heavy fire from Israeli forces.
Here are his translated comments:
This is the moment we have been warning the whole world of, all generators are off, all power sources are out. We have 39 newborns in the incubators, those babies are fighting against death. No one is able to move around the compound, snipers are stationed all over the place in addition to the drones that target and kill any moving person. A few minutes ago one of the engineering team was hit by a sniper, he was hit in the neck and was paralysed and he’s now about to die. Part of the hospital was shelled and part of the building caught fire, we fear it will engulf the whole compound. A few families tried to leave but they were targeted; now they are lying dead outside the hospital. We cannot get to them. We are totally stranded, we are cut off from the outside world, and above all, we are left without any medical resources. We cannot even bury the dead. Ferocious gunfire can be heard within the vicinity of the hospital, the intensive care unit received a mortar shell a few minutes ago. Blood is everywhere, on the floor, we cannot even clean it. In the past, the Israeli killing machine was killing and this was conveyed on TV screens. Now they are perpetrating the same killing but no one is listening, no one is watching, the whole world is standing by. We are speaking with whatever is left of my phone battery, after that, we will be silent.Medecine Sans Frontieres issued the following update on the 11th November 2023,
Gaza: Patients and medical staff trapped in hospitals under fire
I call on the UK Haemophilia Society to join the many NGOs, human rights groups, doctors, lawyers, journalists and make a public statement calling for a FULL CEASEFIRE NOW to protect the hospitals, staff and patients! I personally have called for a ceasefire since just after the first attacks on civilians. To remain silent is to be complicit with the genocidal actions of an apartheid state. Gazan doctors are calling out for our help and support so they in turn can continue assisting their patients. They are heroes chosing to stay and care for the sick and dying in the most horrendous conditions imagineable and we cannot let them down!
Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad. She was a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.