Israeli gunfire forces evacuation of MAP-supported medical point in Gaza

The shooting took place in Abu Madeen, between Al-Bureij and Al-Maghazi, in Deir al-Balah, where the medical point is run by MAP’s partner, the Culture and Free Thought Association (CFTA). Stray bullets hit the clinic, damaging a water tank on the roof. CFTA evacuated all patients and medical staff, with around 40 patients inside the clinic at the time, and it remains unclear whether services will resume tomorrow.

Less than a week ago, Israeli military quadcopter gunfire killed a 65-year-old patient inside a MAP-supported medical point in Jabalia, northern Gaza, run by MAP’s partner Al-Awda Health and Community Association.

Mohammed Al Hour, MAP Community Health Worker who lives nearby, said:

"The gunfire has not stopped since midnight last night. I was at home, and the shooting just continued. I wouldn’t say we have got used to it, because people don’t really have many choices. They have to carry on with their lives and meet their basic needs.

So, this morning, I went to the clinic, and there was still gunfire from time to time. At times, it became more intense, and some bullets reached us. One of them landed about a metre away from me.

People panicked, and we decided to close the medical point, especially as there had also been gunfire in the surrounding area that hit a woman and a child.

This point serves around 250 displaced people from the surrounding areas every day.

Every day, we see displaced people coming to us looking for care. We see their suffering on their bodies. I still see people coming with skin conditions because of the difficult conditions they are living in. They tell us about the rats, the lack of water, and how  dependent they are on community kitchens for food.

Last week, an eight-year-old girl came with her five-year-old brother. We discovered that both children had impetigo. The boy’s condition was severe and advanced. What was even harder was discovering that this eight-year-old girl had taken responsibility for bringing her little brother to get treatment. I later found out that both of their parents had died in the war, and that they were living with an elderly grandmother who could no longer move around easily. My heart hurts for her, and for all the children we see every day.

All of this is happening while the world thinks that we have had a break from the war. But this is a war that continues to return to us every day. And the hardest thing is seeing its impact on the children around us."

Fikr Shalltoot, Gaza Director at MAP, said:

"Nearly a year into the so-called “ceasefire”, healthcare in Gaza is still being deliberately targeted by the Israel military on a daily basis. Medical points are being evacuated, patients are being killed and injured, and hospitals and clinics across Gaza still lack the medicines and supplies they need to function. This is nowhere close to what last October’s ceasefire was supposed to mean for millions of people in Gaza.

Nearly a year on, there has been no meaningful recovery for Gaza’s health system after three years of genocide. Hospitals are still damaged, vital medicines and supplies remain in desperately short supply, and healthcare workers are being left to keep services running with far less than they need. For Palestinians, the relief they were promised has never arrived."

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MAP runs four medical points with Al Awda and three with CFTA across northern Gaza and Gaza City, providing primary healthcare services primarily to displaced Palestinians. Together, these two partners see an average of 250 patients per day.