WHO: Israel Attacked Staff Shelter and Main Warehouse Three Times in One Day
Gaza (Quds News Network)- The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued an urgent warning after Israeli forces attacked key WHO facilities in Gaza, including a building sheltering staff and families and its main warehouse three times on Monday.
Israeli airstrikes hit a WHO staff residence in Deir al-Balah three times, causing major damage and sparking fires. Staff members and their families, including children, were forced to flee on foot toward Al-Mawasi amid active shelling.
The Israeli military reportedly entered the building, where male staff and relatives were handcuffed, stripped, and interrogated at gunpoint. Two WHO employees and two family members were detained. Three were later released. One staff member remains in Israeli custody.
“These attacks expose our colleagues to grave danger,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Forcing women and children to flee under fire is a violation of their basic rights.”
In a high-risk rescue operation, WHO evacuated 32 people, including children, to its office. But the office itself is now near the edge of the evacuation zone and faces ongoing threats.
The same day, WHO’s main medical warehouse in Deir al-Balah came under attack. The strike triggered explosions and a fire, destroying supplies. The site was later looted by desperate civilians. The warehouse is now nonfunctional.
This loss comes at a critical time. Gaza’s hospitals are collapsing. Fuel, equipment, and medical supplies are running out. WHO says it is now “severely constrained” in supporting emergency health efforts.
WHO has relocated dozens of staff from other residences to its office, but warns that most staff housing is now inaccessible. The organization fears its operations may grind to a halt.
The latest evacuation order issued by the Israeli military has affected multiple WHO facilities. With 88% of Gaza either under evacuation or inside militarized zones, the agency says there is now “no safe place to go.”
“The space for humanitarian operations is shrinking fast,” WHO warned, calling on UN member states to ensure the urgent flow of aid, especially medical supplies, into Gaza.
WHO reiterated its demand for the protection of all humanitarian staff and facilities. It also called for the immediate release of its detained staff member.
The World Health Organization stressed that the destruction of health infrastructure and harassment of humanitarian workers has crossed every red line.
“Life in Gaza is being relentlessly squeezed,” WHO said. “The chance to prevent more deaths and to rebuild the health system is slipping away.”
“A ceasefire is not just necessary; it is overdue.”
