By Virginia Pietromarchi and Stephen Quillen – Aljazeera
Hospitals in the southern Gaza Strip have descended into chaos since the resumption of the war. After eight weeks, doctors are exhausted and fuel reserves nearly gone because of Israel’s blockade.
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According to the United Nations, not a single hospital in the territory’s north can operate on patients. The most seriously wounded are transferred daily to the south in convoys organised by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
But even there, the UN says, the 12 remaining hospitals are only “partially functional”.
100 aid trucks enter Gaza: Red Crescent
The Palestinian Red Crescent says it received the trucks from its Egyptian counterpart through Rafah’s border crossing.
The trucks are carrying food, water, medical supplies and medicine, it said.
About 500 trucks of humanitarian supplies were entering the Gaza Strip every day before the war started on October 7. The UN says the current flow of aid is no match for the growing needs of civilians in Gaza.
The UN has lobbied for Israel to open the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing near Rafah, which used to handle large quantities of goods before the war. Israel has refused.
[Courtesy of the Palestine Red Crescent] [Courtesy of the Palestine Red Crescent] [Courtesy of the Palestine Red Crescent]
Third time US warship intercepted Houthi drones, missiles
A Pentagon official is telling Al Jazeera that the USS Carney, a guided-missile destroyer deployed in the Red Sea since September, shot down Houthi drones while it was on patrol.
It was responding to a distress call from a merchant vessel, and on its way, its crew saw a missile land near this cargo ship.
A second drone was detected coming towards it and the Unity Explorer, and the Carney crew shot it down as well. This is the third time since the USS Carney was deployed to the Red Sea that it has intercepted and destroyed either a guided missile, a drone, or both.