Israeli offensive forces field hospital to close in Rafah

The 22 patients who remained in the hospital have been referred to other facilities because we can no longer guarantee their safety. MSF has seen a pattern of systematic attacks against medical facilities and civilian infrastructure since the beginning of the war. In light of this, as well as the advancing offensive, we have made the difficult decision to leave Rafah Indonesian Field Hospital at a time when people’s medical needs are great.

“We have had to leave 12 different health structures and have endured 26 violent incidents, which include airstrikes damaging hospitals, tanks being fired at agreed deconflicted shelters, ground offensives into medical centers, and convoys fired upon,” says Michel-Olivier Lacharité, MSF head of emergency operations.

The health system of Gaza is being dismantled, resulting in devastating consequences for people trapped in the Strip. According to OCHA, 24 out of the 36 hospitals in Gaza are now out of service. MSF is trying to establish field hospitals elsewhere in Gaza, but these few structures will not be able to cope with a massive influx of wounded civilians, on top of overwhelming medical needs. They can in no way replace a functional health system.

Before evacuating the hospital, MSF had been offering post-operative care for war-wounded patients since mid-December 2023. Our teams worked on providing care to people in the 60-bed hospital, where surgeons undertook approximately 35 procedures per week in the operating theater. Inpatient and outpatient care ran six days a week, with about 130 consultations a day, with teams providing dressing changes, physiotherapy, and counseling. The Ministry of Health has also been forced to move its activities from Rafah Indonesian Field Hospital, resulting in the closure of the entire hospital. 

Alongside this closure, prolonged blockages of aid are further hindering the humanitarian response and endangering the lives of people trapped in Gaza. Supplies of fuel—needed to run everything from hospitals to bakeries—and other necessities are running dangerously low while people cannot leave or enter Gaza.
 
MSF has reopened our activities at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, with outpatient and inpatient departments focusing on orthopedic surgery, care for burns, and occupational therapy services; maternity services will open in the coming days. MSF staff were forced to flee Nasser Hospital in mid-February and leave patients behind after a shell struck the orthopedic department and Israeli forces ordered the evacuation of the facility before raiding it. 

As Palestinians in Gaza again face another onslaught of bombing, shooting, and violence, we again call for an immediate stop to this offensive, which is further displacing hundreds of thousands of people—among more than 1.9 million, or 85 percent of the population, already displaced by this war—and depriving them of essential aid. 

According to the UN, at least 360,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah since Israeli forces expanded their offensive and evacuation orders. This campaign of indiscriminate death and destruction has made it impossible to provide lifesaving humanitarian and medical assistance.

More updates from Gaza

Israel’s offensive in Rafah and continued fighting in the Middle Area, particularly in Nuseirat, have forced thousands into Deir al-Balah, where there is also significant shelling. Our teams are witnessing increased bombing throughout Gaza. 

Last week the ER at Al-Aqsa Hospital, where MSF works, received 228 injured patients, 56 of whom died. On May 10 and 11 alone, 46 of the 117 patients brought to the ER succumbed to their injuries. These mass casualty incidents are becoming more frequent.  

Israeli forces continue to occupy the Rafah crossing, barring the entry or flow of people and supplies. Efforts are being made to move supplies via Kerem Shalom after fighting between Hamas and Israeli forces blocked the crossing for days. Meanwhile, Israel’s Jabalia offensive is also blocking access to supplies from the Erez crossing in the north.  

The indiscriminate bombing, the blockage of aid, and the lack of concrete action from states supporting this war continue to kill people every day and cause immense suffering. The occupation and blockage of crossing points must cease, aid must be allowed into Gaza, and there must be an immediate and sustained ceasefire to prevent more deaths and injuries and restore and scale up the flow of humanitarian aid.