Situation Update
Gaza Strip
• Health updates
• The ongoing ground operation in North Gaza has led to significant population displacement and severe restriction of humanitarian access. As of 19 November, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that between 100,000 and 131,000 people had been displaced from North Gaza to Gaza City, while only some 700 people had moved to the south of Wadi Gaza, since the start of the ground operation on 6 October 2024. Access to humanitarian assistance remains restricted for an estimated 65,000 to 75,000 people remaining in North Gaza, according to a recent OCHA report (19 November).
• The obstruction of humanitarian missions to North Gaza continues to affect the health response, hindering delivery of life-saving supplies and deployment of emergency medical teams (EMTs). Between 8-17 November, five requests for deployment of emergency medical teams (EMT) to Kamal Adwan were denied by Israeli authorities.
• There are currently three doctors and 30 nurses at Kamal Adwan Hospital, providing services to 60 admitted patients. Among these, six are critically ill patients in the ICU, including one child in the neonatal ICU. The hospital reported receiving around 100 injuries on 20 November.
• On 20 November, Al-Awda Jabalia Hospital attended to 20 admitted patients, 29 injuries and 27 follow-up cases. The hospital reported that their fuel stock was completely depleted as of 19 November.
• Between 14 and 20 November 2024, four attacks on health were verified, including three in North Gaza and one in Rafah:
- During a coordinated WHO medical evacuation mission on 17 November, one patient and one companion were detained at the checkpoint en-route from Kamal Adwan to Shifa Hospital.
- On 19 November, the office of the Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital was attacked, with no casualties recorded.
- On 20 November, the rooftop and the courtyards of Al-Awda Jabalia Hospital were attacked, causing damages to the rooftop, and injuring four people, with one person sustaining severe injury.
- On 18 November, an attack caused severe damages on An-Najjar hospital, the only public hospital in Rafah. The hospital, located in an inaccessible area with ongoing hostilities, has been out of service since May 2024.
• Persistent fuel shortages continue to jeopardize humanitarian interventions, including life-saving healthcare provision, impacting the operations of hospitals, PHCCs and ambulance services.
• Medical evacuation of patients outside of Gaza remains limited since 7 May. As of 20 November, out of 15,600 cases requested for medical evacuation, 5,244 (34%) have been evacuated, since October 2023, with only 342 patients evacuated since Rafah Closure in May 2024.
• According to Israeli authorities, over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed inside Israel, and approximately 5,400 were reported injured. As of 19 November, there have been 376 reported fatalities and 2,440 reported injuries of Israeli soldiers since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip.