Palestinian girl Eman al-Kholi, whose limb was amputated after being wounded in an Israeli strike that killed her parents, looks on as she sits in a wheelchair at the European Hospital, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on December 28, 2023. (Photo by Reuters)
Geneva, September 14 (RHC)-- The World Health Organization (WHO) says one-quarter of those wounded during the ongoing Israeli genocidal war on the Gaza Strip have suffered “life-changing injuries.”
“At least one in four of the injured in Gaza since October 2023 are estimated to have life-changing injuries that require rehabilitation services now and for years to come,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, on Friday. His remarks came in line with an earlier statement by the UN agency.
On Thursday, the WHO said at least 25% of all those wounded since the war erupted in October, or at least 22,500 people as of July 23rd, had suffered “life-changing injuries”, many requiring amputations and other "huge" rehabilitation needed for years to come.
The figure is "more like 24,000" by Thursday, according to Rik Peeperkorn, the WHO's representative for the Palestinian territories. Referring to the ongoing strikes, the WHO chief said “it is critical to ensure access to all essential health services, including rehabilitation to prevent illness and death.”
The WHO also reiterated its call for a ceasefire in Gaza, “which is critical for rebuilding the health system to cope with escalating needs.”
In other news, the secretary-general of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) described the humanitarian and health situation in Gaza as “catastrophic” -- noting that there is no security or safety for health workers while performing their duties in the strip.
“Israel is using claims of its deliveries of humanitarian aid as a tool for political propaganda, and it is not allowing the necessary materials to enter the Strip,” al-Jazeera quoted Christopher Lockyear as saying.
Israel unleashed its genocidal war on Gaza on October 7th after the Palestinian Hamas resistance group carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.
The Tel Aviv regime has also imposed a “complete siege” on the territory, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there.
Since the start of the aggression, the Tel Aviv regime has killed 41,118 Palestinians and injured nearly 95,125 others, with most of the victims being women and children.
