Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1419 EAT on Tuesday 22 July 2025

The World Health Organization (WHO) says Israel’s ground offensive in central Gaza is severely hindering its ability to operate, following reported attacks on its facilities.

The UN health agency accused Israeli forces of targeting a building sheltering WHO staff and their families in the city of Deir al-Balah on Monday. It also reported that its main warehouse in the area was attacked and destroyed.

The Israeli military has not yet issued a response.

This marks Israel’s first major ground operation in Deir al-Balah since the war with Hamas began 21 months ago.

The offensive has displaced tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians and comes amid escalating warnings of a worsening hunger crisis across the territory.

The United Nations reported on Monday that clinics and hospitals in Gaza are receiving increasing numbers of malnourished individuals in extremely poor health. Meanwhile, the Hamas-run health ministry stated that 19 people have died from malnutrition since Saturday.

On Sunday, the Israeli military ordered the immediate evacuation of six city blocks in southern Deir al-Balah, warning that it would operate “with great force to destroy the enemy’s capabilities and terrorist infrastructure.”

An estimated 50,000 to 80,000 residents were instructed to flee south toward the al-Mawasi area, already overcrowded and lacking sufficient resources.

Despite the evacuation order, the UN’s humanitarian office said its staff would remain in Deir al-Balah. They are stationed across dozens of facilities whose coordinates have been shared with Israeli authorities, and the UN stressed that these sites must be protected.

On Monday night, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a strong statement condemning attacks on its facilities in Gaza.

It said a WHO staff residence had been struck three times, leaving employees and their families—many of them children—exposed to grave danger and severely traumatized after airstrikes sparked a fire and caused significant damage.

The organization further stated that Israeli forces entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot toward al-Mawasi amid active hostilities. Male staff and family members were reportedly handcuffed, stripped, interrogated on site, and screened at gunpoint.

Two WHO staff members and two of their relatives were detained. While three have since been released, one WHO employee remains in custody.

Earlier that day, the UN said it was receiving reports of severely malnourished people arriving at clinics and hospitals in increasingly poor health. According to the Hamas-run health ministry, 19 people have died from malnutrition since Saturday.

The WHO called for the immediate release of its detained staff member and urged the protection of all remaining personnel, who, along with their families, have been relocated to its office in Deir al-Balah for safety.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that its main warehouse in Deir al-Balah was severely damaged after an attack triggered explosions and a fire inside the facility. The warehouse was later looted by desperate crowds, the agency added.

While the WHO did not assign blame for the incident, it described the attack as part of a “pattern of systematic destruction of health facilities” across Gaza.

In a stark warning, the agency said its ability to operate in Gaza is now “compromised,” undermining already fragile efforts to support a collapsing health system and “pushing survival further out of reach for more than two million people.”

The Israeli military has yet to comment on the attacks on WHO premises or the broader offensive in Deir al-Balah.

However, Israel’s Haaretz newspaper reported on Monday that military forces are attempting to establish a corridor cutting through Deir al-Balah.

The move would sever the city from the al-Mawasi area and restrict movement between central Gaza’s refugee camps, where Israeli ground forces are not currently deployed.

The United Nations reports that nearly 88% of Gaza is now either subject to Israeli evacuation orders or classified as militarized zones, leaving the territory’s 2.1 million residents squeezed into just 46 square kilometers. Within these overcrowded areas, essential services have largely broken down.

Israeli officials have cited the potential presence of hostages as one reason Deir al-Balah had previously not faced a full-scale ground assault. Of the roughly 50 hostages still held by Hamas, at least 20 are believed to be alive.

Families of the hostages have publicly warned that military operations could jeopardize their safety.

Israel’s offensive in Gaza began following the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.

Since then, at least 59,029 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

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