WHO loses communication with its contacts in Gaza's Al Shifa hospital, expresses ‘grave concern’

WHO said it has “grave concerns for the safety of the health workers, hundreds of sick and injured patients”.

The World Health Organization said on Saturday it has lost communication with its contacts in Al Shifa hospital in northern Gaza, and expressed "grave concerns" for the safety of everyone trapped there by the fighting while calling for an immediate ceasefire.

An injured person is assisted at Shifa Hospital after an Israeli air strike hit the nearby Al-Ahli Hospital (REUTERS)

The spokesperson for the Gaza health ministry said that operations in Al Shifa hospital complex, the largest in the Palestinian enclave, were suspended on Saturday after it ran out of fuel.

WHO said it has "grave concerns for the safety of the health workers, hundreds of sick and injured patients, including babies on life support and displaced people who remain inside the hospital", and reiterated its call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.