WHO says IDF gave 24 hours to move supplies in Gaza, Israel denies it

The Israeli Defence Force has told the World Health Organization to move its medical supplies stored in its warehouse in Gaza because they will be "beyond use" in ground operations.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the IDF gave the international body, which provides humanitarian aid to Gaza, 24 hours to clear out the warehouse.

"We appeal to Israel to withdraw the order, and take every possible measure to protect civilians, and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and humanitarian facilities," he said in a statement on social media.

However, the Israeli government denied issuing such orders to the WHO, which is a UN body.

"The truth is, we didn't ask you to evacuate the warehouses and we also made it clear (in writing) to the relevant UN representatives.

"From a UN official, we would expect, at least, to be more accurate (sic)," the Cogat, an agency responsible for Israeli government activities in Palestine, said on X (formerly known as Twitter).

This comes as more than a thousand Palestinians, including children, have been killed since the negotiated pause in Israeli bombardment - which ended on Dec 1.

Since the violence started almost two months ago, some 10,000 Palestinians - mostly children - have died in the unrelenting bombing and ground raids while some 1,400 Israelis died in a Hamas attack in Israel on Oct 7.

Some 200 Israelis were taken captive by Hamas with about half already released, in exchange for some 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

Many Palestinians released were women and children, a number held without trial.

Hamas said a mother and her two young children, who were held captive, were killed in Israeli bombardment and had offered to release their bodies, but Israel has refused, Al Jazeera reported.

The IDF has not spared civilian infrastructure in its bombardment, including hospitals and UN schools where thousands are seeking refuge, arguing they are being used by Hamas.

Healthcare facilities a target

The Washington Post reported that the IDF has made Gaza's healthcare facilities targets of its military operations.

In one harrowing footage, local journalists documented bodies of premature babies rotting on hospital beds at al-Nasr Hospital, after the IDF told those inside they must leave within 30 minutes because the hospital would be bombed, the US daily reported.

Healthcare workers said they were forced to make the difficult decision of taking the strongest of the babies with them and making sure the respirators feeding the oxygen to the others were working.

The journalists entered the hospital two weeks later during the pause in attacks, to find the bodies blackened with mould, eaten by maggots and some mauled by stray dogs.

The IDF, however, cast doubt that this had happened.

"There were no premature babies that decomposed because of the IDF; there were probably no babies that decomposed whatsoever,” IDF spokesperson Doron Spielman said. - Mkini