Geneva, November 16 (RHC)-- The U.N.'s human rights chief, Volker Türk, said outbreaks of disease and hunger in Gaza now appear “inevitable.”  His remarks came amid a worsening humanitarian catastrophe at Gaza's largest hospital, the Al-Shifa medical complex, which is still being occupied by Israel’s army. 

Thousands of patients, medical workers and displaced Palestinians remain trapped inside the hospital and unable to leave. Medical workers report Israeli attacks have severely damaged Al-Shifa’s main surgery building, and about 200 people were reportedly blindfolded by Israeli troops and led away to interrogations. 

The World Health Organization’s Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says 26 out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are now closed due to damage from Israeli strikes or because they have run out of fuel.  The WHO chief said: “Israel’s military incursion into Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City is totally unacceptable.  Hospitals are not battlegrounds.”