The Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital was built and equipped by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA). In 2010, the Board of Trustees of the Islamic University of Gaza approved the establishment of a training and research hospital in the Gaza Strip.[1] The construction of the Palestine-Turkey Friendship Hospital began in 2011. It was completed in 2017 at a total cost of 70 million US dollars.[1][2] During the Israel–Hamas war, the hospital ran out of fuel. Gaza health officials reported that it shut down on November 1.[3] The hospital director also stated that the hospital was hit in an Israeli airstrike.[4] Since then, the Israeli Army has been using the location as a military base.[5]
| Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Gaza Strip |
| Organisation | |
| Funding | Built by TIKA; Operated by the Ministry of Health |
| Type | Specialist |
| Affiliated university | Islamic University of Gaza; Palestinian Ministry of Health |
| Services | |
| Beds | 200 |
| Speciality | Oncology; Teaching |
| History | |
| Construction started | 2011 |
| Opened | 2020 |
| Closed | 2023 (part of Israel-Hamas War) |
Facilities
editThe hospital was built at the campus of the Faculty of Medicine at the Islamic University of Gaza, which is located south of Gaza City. It has a total interior space of 33,400 sq. meters and consists of 8 interconnected blocks, with 4 operating rooms, intensive care units, laboratories, and 200 beds. In its full capacity, the hospital can serve up to 30,000 patients annually, as well as provide health training for 500 medical students, 800 nursing students, and 400 allied health services students per year.[2][6]
Operation
editIn the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital began to operate as an isolation and treatment facility. A provisional deed of transfer was issued and signed by TİKA and the Rectorate of the Islamic University of Gaza, with the Gaza authorities taking over on March 26, 2020.[1]
In November 2021, as the COVID-19 pandemic began to subside, the Gaza Ministry of Health began relocating oncology and oncology-related services from the different governmental hospitals in the Gaza Strip to the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital in a bid to "unify the diagnostic and treatment services in one specialized and integrated center".[6] The Hospital currently operates under a joint administration from IUG and the MoH.[7]
During the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, and amid the October 2023 Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, the hospital was forced to shut down, despite being Gaza's only cancer hospital, after running out of fuel.[8] On October 30, hospital director Dr. Subhi Skaik stated the third floor of the hospital was hit in an Israeli airstrike.[4] The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the airstrike "in the strongest terms" on the same day, stating it was a violation of international law.[9] Israeli military stated it did not strike the hospital.[10]
Satellite imagery has demonstrated that Israeli army also used the hospital as a base for military operations in 2024, prompting rebuke from the Turkish government.[11][12]
Gallery
edit-
A look at the southern entrance of the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital and the IUG Faculty of Medicine. The TIKA logo can be seen on the main entrance. -
The Hospital and the IUG Faculty of Medicine buildings as the appear in an aerial view taken from the north-east. -
View of the hospital from the north -
Outpatient clinics entrance
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "The Hospital Built by TİKA in Gaza Will Give Hope to Palestinians in the Fight against the Coronavirus - TİKA". www.tika.gov.tr. Archived from the original on 2022-09-24. Retrieved 2022-10-02.
- ^ a b "Achievements and Milestones – كلية الطب". Retrieved 2022-10-02.
- ^ "Gaza's Only Cancer Hospital Goes Out of Service - Health Officials =1 November 2023". Reuters.
- ^ a b "Israeli warplanes hit Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital in Gaza". TRT World. 2023-10-30. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
- ^ Loveday Morris, Evan Hill, Samuel Granados, and Hazem Balousha (May 17, 2024). "What Israel's strategic corridor in Gaza reveals about its postwar plans". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "MOH – Gaza: Completion of the first phase of transferring oncology treatment services to the Palestinian-Turkish Friendship Hospital". وزارة الصحة الفلسطينية (in Arabic). 2022-02-27. Archived from the original on 2022-10-07. Retrieved 2022-10-02.
- ^ "MOH-Gaza, IUG sign an MOU to operate the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital". وزارة الصحة الفلسطينية (in Arabic). 2020-04-09. Retrieved 2022-10-02.
- ^ "Israel-Hamas war: Gaza's only cancer hospital forced to close - as dozens killed in Israeli strikes". Sky news. 17 October 2023.
- ^ "Turkey condemns attack on Turkish-Palestinian hospital in Gaza". Reuters. 2023-10-30. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
- ^ Abeer Salman, Ivana Kottasová, Amir Tal, Pierre Meilhan, Paul P. Murphy and Simone McCarthy (October 31, 2023). "Gaza: Israeli troops advance, Al-Quds Hospital evacuation and regional warnings". CNN. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Israeli Army Appears to Be Using Gaza Hospital, School as Bases, Washington Post Reports". Haaretz. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
- ^ "Turkey 'threatens' Israel with legal action after army uses Gaza hospital as base". New Arab. Retrieved 30 September 2024.