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Two of the last functioning hospitals in northern Gaza are encircled by Israeli forces, staff say

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Two of the last functioning hospitals in northern Gaza are encircled by Israeli forces, staff say
News

News

Two of the last functioning hospitals in northern Gaza are encircled by Israeli forces, staff say

2025-05-22 06:12 Last Updated At:06:21

Two of northern Gaza’s last functioning hospitals have been encircled by Israeli troops, preventing anyone from leaving or entering the facilities, hospital staff and aid groups said this week, as Israel pursued its renewed offensive into the devastated Palestinian territory.

The Indonesian hospital and al-Awda hospital are among the region’s only surviving medical centers. Both have come under fire this week, including shelling at al-Awda that happened Wednesday as The Associated Press spoke to its director on the phone.

A third hospital, Kamal Adwan, is out of service, its director said, citing Israeli troops and drones in its vicinity.

Israeli authorities issued evacuation orders Friday for large parts of northern Gaza ahead of attacks intended to pressure the Hamas militant group to release more hostages. New evacuation orders followed Tuesday.

All three hospitals and three primary health care centers are within the evacuation zone. Israel has not ordered the evacuation of the facilities themselves. Another two hospitals and four primary care centers are within 1,000 meters (1,093 yards) of the zone, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization.

Israeli military operations and evacuation orders “are stretching the health system beyond the breaking point,” he said.

Only 20 out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain partially functioning, serving the territory’s more than 2 million people, amid continued bombing, rising malnutrition rates and dwindling medical supplies.

The WHO said hospitals in northern Gaza are “at a serious risk of shutting down completely.” The United Nations agency has documented nearly 700 attacks on health care facilities in Gaza since the start of Israel’s 19-month war against the Hamas militant group.

The Israeli military has raided or laid siege to hospitals throughout the war, accusing Hamas of using them as command centers and to hide fighters, though it has only provided evidence for some of its claims. Hamas security men have been seen in hospitals during the war, controlling access to certain areas, and in recent weeks Israel has targeted alleged militants inside health facilities.

Palestinians say the latest attacks on hospitals in the north are part of a larger plan to displace the population to the south and eventually drive them from Gaza.

Israel has vowed to facilitate what it refers to as the voluntary migration of much of Gaza's population to other countries, which many Palestinians and others view as a plan for forcible expulsion.

Israel wants to “ensure the forced displacement of people from the area” by putting hospitals out of service, said Rami Shurafi, a board member of al-Awda hospital.

The Indonesian hospital, once the largest in northern Gaza, has been surrounded by Israeli troops, who were positioned about 500 meters (545 yards) away. Drones have hovered above, monitoring any movement, since Sunday, an aid group that supports the hospital said.

The Israeli military said its forces were operating around the hospital and targeting Hamas infrastructure but that troops had not entered the facility and ambulances were allowed to move.

Israeli bulldozers demolished a perimeter wall of the hospital, according to the aid group MERC-Indonesia and a hospital staff member who had since evacuated. The staffer spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

On Tuesday, airstrikes targeted the hospital’s generators, sparking a fire and damaging its main power supply. The strikes also caused damage to the hospital's water supply, according to a video posted by MERC-Indonesia. Large flames were seen rising from the area before daybreak. A speaker in the video said the fire was close to the hospital fuel supply, but firefighters controlled the flames.

At least one staff member was killed, according to the WHO, which said those who remained in the hospital were in urgent need of water and food. The U.N. said it was working to transfer remaining patients to other facilities.

Military activity around the hospital also damaged ceilings, the hospital roof and some equipment. Nearly 20 people, including six patients and 13 medical workers remained in the hospital, said a MERC-Indonesia official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. Most patients evacuated themselves after fighting intensified in the area starting Thursday.

Doctors and staffers at the hospital were not immediately reachable for comment. A video posted by MERC-Indonesia that was shot from the hospital windows showed an Israeli tank a few meters (several feet) away from the hospital.

Nearly a kilometer (about half a mile) away, Israeli drones fired Monday into the al-Awda hospital courtyard, preventing movement, Shurafi said. On Wednesday, the hospital was shelled while its director was on the phone with AP. A large boom could be heard on the call.

“They are bombing the hospital,” said Dr. Mohammed Salha, the facility's director. He later said one security guard was wounded. Patients were not near the area that was hit, he said.

A video shared with AP showed damage to the roof and debris in the corridors, with dust still rising from the area.

Relief International, the aid group supporting al-Awda, said the hospital's water tanks and a patient ward were hit in the Israeli strikes.

On Tuesday, Israeli drones fired at two ambulances that transferred three patients to Gaza City as the crews tried to return to the hospital, spokesperson Khaled Alhelo said.

Alhelo himself was unable to return to the hospital Tuesday because of military activity. There are currently no ambulances or internet lines at al-Awda hospital, according to Shurafi and Alhelo.

Israeli troops are about 900 meters (about half a mile) away from the hospital, Alhelo said. But the real risk, he said, is from Israeli drones flying over the hospital and preventing any movement in or out.

“Anyone moving in the hospital is fired at. They are all keeping low inside the hospital,” he said.

The Israeli military had no comment when asked about the situation at al-Awda and did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday’s shelling.

About 47 patients, including nearly 20 children and several pregnant women, and some 140 doctors and medical staff members are still at the hospital, hospital board member Shurafi said.

He said the hospital board decided not to evacuate the hospital and called for supplies and the return of ambulances because there are still bombings and wounded people in the area.

“In light of the war, and conflict, it should remain functioning,” Shurafi said. He said the hospital has been besieged and raided several times since the war began in October 2023, but he called the current phase the “most critical.”

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251 others. The militants are still holding 58 captives, around a third of whom are believed to be alive, after most of the rest were returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive, which has destroyed large swaths of Gaza, has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count.

Associated Press journalists Fatma Khaled in Cairo and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this report.

Smoke rises following an Israeli army bombardment in Gaza Strip, seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

Smoke rises following an Israeli army bombardment in Gaza Strip, seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

Palestinians evacuate after the Israeli army issued an evacuation warning for several schools and a hospital in Gaza City's Rimal neighborhood, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians evacuate after the Israeli army issued an evacuation warning for several schools and a hospital in Gaza City's Rimal neighborhood, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians evacuate after the Israeli army issued an evacuation warning for several schools and a hospital in Gaza City's Rimal neighborhood, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians evacuate after the Israeli army issued an evacuation warning for several schools and a hospital in Gaza City's Rimal neighborhood, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

NEW YORK (AP) — Robbed an inning earlier, Cody Bellinger wasn't sure his first three-homer game had been swiped away again.

“I didn't know at first,” he said. “For that third one to finally get over feels pretty good.”

Bellinger hit three two-run homers against his former team and was denied a fourth by a spectacular catch, leading the Yankees to an 11-0 rout of the Chicago Cubs on Friday night.

Aaron Judge made a trio of outstanding grabs in right field for the Yankees, who have won fifth straight games following a a six-game losing streak.

Bellinger, whose dad Clay played for the Yankees from 1999 to 2001, is a two-time All-Star and 2019 NL MVP.

He spent 2023 and ’24 with the Cubs, hitting .266 with 18 homers and 78 RBIs in 130 games last year while missing time because of a broken right rib. The Cubs traded him to New York in December with $52.5 million remaining on his contract and agreed to pay the Yankees $5 million.

He homered in a three-run third off Chris Flexen and in the fifth against Caleb Thielbar for this 18th multi-homer game. Bellinger nearly went deep in the seventh but was robbed by Kyle Tucker on a drive above the right-field wall.

“I was watching it. He timed it up perfect, so I was a little sick about it, honestly,” Bellinger said. “But it was a good catch.”

“Boys were giving me a hard time after he robbed it. Boonie was giving me hard time,” Bellinger added.

A four-time All-Star and a Gold Glove winner, Tucker snatched the ball as a fan tried for it, the spectator clasping both sides of the outfielder's glove.

“I caught the ball and he caught my glove, so I figured even if I dropped it they’d probably look at it and get it overturned," Tucker said. "I’ve probably had some encounters with me trying to go into the stands and catching a ball and me hitting someone’s hand or whatever but I don’t know if anyone’s ever actually kind of caught my glove while doing it.”

Bellinger homered in the eighth off Jordan Wicks, just above the red glove of leaping center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and into the dark glove of a kid in the front row.

“The fan just beat to the spot," Crow-Armstrong said. "He just had a better chance of catching it higher than I did.”

Bellinger, who had rounded first, watched and then smiled when he saw he had hit No. 3.

“Glad the fan caught it before PCA could grab it,” said Bellinger, who met the boy after and got the ball back. “I’ve seen PCA rob so many homers. He’s a freak athlete out there.”

Bellinger is batting .406 over a career-high 16-game hitting streak, raising his average to .285 with 16 homers and 54 RBIs.

He had spoken with his Cubs ex-teammates during batting practice.

“No, no, no revenge,” he said. “Honestly, ultimately it was just fun to be out there. I saw a bunch of guys I hadn’t seen in a while and I shared a bunch of good memories with them for these past two years.”

Jazz Chisholm Jr. and manager Aaron Boone encouraged Bellinger to emerge from the dugout for a curtain call.

“He was a little reluctant, but then the Bell-lin-ger” over the dugout got pretty loud. So I think he succumbed to it," Boone said. “Belly’s loved being here and loved playing here in a meaningful place to him, going back to his childhood."

Bellinger turns 30 on Sunday and can opt out of the final season of his contract this fall. With long balls and wide smiles, he seems to have found a home in the Yankees clubhouse.

He tried not to make much of getting the three homers against the Cubs, but Bellinger's teammates could sense the significance.

“It’s always good to go against your old teammates that you spend a lot of time with, you know, you respect,” Boone said. “To perform right away against them I’m sure probably is a little cherry on top for him.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger (35) hits a home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger (35) hits a home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger reacts after lining out during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger reacts after lining out during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

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