Charity demands UK evacuate 21 critically ill children from Gaza

A British charity is calling on the UK government to facilitate the urgent evacuation of 21 critically ill children from a besieged hospital in northern Gaza.

The Kamal Adwan Hospital was recently raided by Israeli soldiers and many of the medical staff detained.

Only two doctors remain to care for more than 150 patients, there is a severe lack of medical supplies, and the surgical facilities no longer function.

The hospital was hit by another airstrike in the early hours of Thursday morning, destroying much of the third floor.

The Israel Defence Forces claims Hamas fighters have been hiding and operating from the Kamal Adwan Hospital, which is in the Jabaliya refugee camp, and released a video showing weapons it says it found in the compound.

The hospital denies any Hamas presence.

The charity, Project Pure Hope, said: “We are witnessing a humanitarian disaster of historic proportions.”

It added: “These 21 children, including two in neonatal ICU and two in paediatric ICU, face life-threatening conditions.

“With each passing hour, the children’s chance of survival diminishes without advanced medical intervention – intervention that cannot be provided under the hospital’s current, catastrophic conditions.”

The charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), said it is “deeply concerned” for the safety of one of its staff members who has been arrested. The fate of many of the hospital’s staff is unknown.

Sky News reported on the dire conditions inside the hospital on Tuesday.

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This week, Project Pure Hope says it held a meeting with the Foreign Office on Tuesday after lobbying the UK government for months to support a plan for evacuations.

Other countries, including Italy, the US, Switzerland, Ireland and the UAE have taken in children.

The charity has raised sufficient money to fund the costs and developed partnerships with UK hospitals but, so far, it says the government has refused to accept any patients.

It said in a statement on Thursday: “While other countries… have opened their doors to these paediatric cases, the UK remains a notable outlier, having yet to implement any such programme.”

The Israeli military operation in northern Gaza has cut the area off from the rest of the strip.

Little aid is getting in, and civilian casualties are rising.

Aid agencies have warned of the risk of famine, and rescue workers are often unable to reach the sites of airstrikes.

Sky News has asked the Foreign Office for a comment.