Gaza’s largest hospital has stopped functioning, the World Health Organization said as hundreds of patients remain trapped at this latest focal point of Israel-Hamas ground battle in the blockaded Palestinian territory.

In Gaza, 20 out of 36 hospitals are no longer functioning, according to the UN’s humanitarian agency.

.@WHO has managed to get in touch with health professionals at the Al-Shifa hospital in #Gaza.

The situation is dire and perilous.

It’s been 3 days without electricity, without water and with very poor internet which has severely impacted our ability to provide essential…

— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) November 12, 2023

“The WHO has managed to get in touch with health professionals at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza…the hospital is not functioning as a hospital anymore, said WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “The world cannot stand silent while hospitals, which should be safe havens, are transformed into scenes of death, devastation, and despair.”

The situation remains grim in north Gaza where hospitals are blockaded by Israeli forces and are not able to provide care to those inside. At least two newborns died at the hospital while more are at risk due to power outages, Reuters reported citing medical staff.

Thousands of Gazans have sought shelter around the Al-Shifa hospital as the battle continued in surrounding areas.

The Al-Quds hospital in Gaza City too is out of service due to lack of generator fuel, said Palestinian Red Crescent.

Israel has on several instances alleged that hospitals in Gaza are being used by Hamas for their operations.

The Israel-Hamas war, the deadliest this region has ever seen, began October 7 as Hamas operatives swarmed from Gaza, killing and kidnapping Israelis and foreigners from border towns. At least 1,200 were killed in the multiple wave of attacks on Israel.

In response, the Benjamin Netanyahu government launched airstrikes on Gaza and expanded ground operations inside the strip, vowing to destroy Hamas and their military capabilities. At least 11,180 people including 4,609 children were killed in the counterattack, according to the Hamas government’s media office.

Witnesses saw “violent fighting” over the night near the hospital with sounds of small arms fire and aerial bombardments echoing across the complex, reported AFP.

Around 3,000 patients and staff are trapped at the hospital complex without adequate water and food, said the UN agencies. Besides two incubated babies, a man too died after his ventilator shut down due to power cut.

“It’s been three days without electricity, without water and with very poor internet which has severely impacted our ability to provide essential care,” said the WHO head.

Al-Shifa director Mohammad Abu Salmiya also rejected Israel’s claims that their soldiers hand-delivered 300 litres of fuel to the hospital. The 300 litres would power generators for “no more than quarter of an hour” anyway, he said.

A controversy erupted at an event in Amsterdam on Sunday when a man snatched a mic from climate activist Greta Thunberg. The disruption occurred after Ms Thunberg invited a Palestinian and an Afghan woman to speak, leading the man to accuse her of introducing politics into the event.

Before inviting the Palestinian and Afghan women onto the stage, Ms Thunberg, while addressing a massive crowd, said, “As a climate justice movement, we have to listen to the voices of those who are being oppressed and those who are fighting for freedom and for justice. Otherwise, there can be no climate justice without international solidarity.” 

After the women spoke and Ms Thunberg resumed her speech, a man stormed the stage, expressing his discontent.

“Came here for a climate demonstration, not a political view,” he said while snatching the mic from Ms Thunberg.

Security then escorted the man off the stage as Ms Thunberg urged him to “calm down”.

Later, she was heard chanting “No climate justice on occupied land,” along with the crowd.

#GretaThunberg gets interrupted at a climate rally after she speaks up about #Palestine the crowd begins to chant ” let her speak” pic.twitter.com/XdrdPD4qyW

— Arthur Morgan (@ArthurM40330824) November 13, 2023

The Afghan woman, Sahar Shirzad, told the news agency Associated Press that Ms Thunberg generously allowed them to share the stage with her, stating, “Basically, she gave her time to us.”

The Palestinian activist, Sara Rachdan, who was also on stage, spoke about “death and mourning” in Gaza.

The incident came after an extensive climate march in Amsterdam, where tens of thousands of individuals paraded through the streets, advocating for increased efforts to combat climate change.

Organizers declared that 70,000 people participated in the march, labelling it the largest climate protest ever in the Netherlands.

Greta Thunberg was also among those walking through the historic heart of the Dutch capital, contributing to the substantial turnout for the event.

The Narcotics Control Bureau has busted an international drug syndicate and seized two kg of cocaine from a Zambian national in a hotel in Mumbai, an NCB official said on Monday.

A Tanzanian woman, who was to receive the consignment, has also been arrested from Delhi, the official said, adding the seized contraband is worth about Rs 15 crore.

Based on a specific information, the NCB Mumbai team conducted a raid in a hotel here and on Thursday apprehended Zambian national LA Gilmore, who was the drug carrier, he said.

The man had visited Addis Ababa (Ethiopia’s capital) from Lusaka in Zambia for the drug consignment. After reaching Mumbai by a flight, he checked into a hotel.

The NCB team, which was monitoring his movements, conducted a search in his hotel room. They found a bag and after cutting it recovered two packets of cocaine weighing two kg, the official said.

During questioning, the man informed the NCB sleuths about some intermediaries in the region linked with drug trafficking.

It was also observed that he was being directed by a handler, the official said.

The NCB team then tactfully monitored the communication of Gilmore’s handler, who told him to go to Delhi to deliver the drug.

The anti-drug agency’s team from Mumbai then rushed to the national capital, where they maintained surveillance in the designated area for delivery.

A Tanzanian woman, named MR Augustino, who was to receive the consignment from Gilmore was intercepted and later arrested in from there on Saturday, the official said.

During the probe, the international network of the syndicate was found spread across multiple cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Goa, he said.