South Africa to Open Four New Provincial Academic Hospitals
South Africa is set to establish four new academic hospitals in noncentral provinces. The official announcement was made by Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi in Parliament, according to TV BRICS.
The initiative aims to address equal access to medical training infrastructure across the country. Construction has already begun on a new academic hospital in Limpopo, which is currently 26 per cent complete.
According to Motsoaledi, South Africa has ten central hospitals where medical students are currently trained, four of which are located in Gauteng province. In contrast, provinces such as Mpumalanga, North West, Limpopo, and the Northern Cape lack these facilities.
The Minister also announced the complete reconstruction of several existing academic hospitals, including a major facility in KwaZulu-Natal and two others located in Tshwane and Mthatha.
Motsoaledi emphasised that the planned developments form part of a broader strategy to modernise South Africa's medical training infrastructure and ensure more equitable access to healthcare education nationwide.
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Mada
12 minutes ago
- Mada
‘Either you get the flour or you get shot': Survivors recount Israel's ‘flour massacre' near Zikim crossing
Hamdy Abu Sidu and his two brothers were among the thousands of aid seekers who walked toward the Zikim crossing in northern Gaza on Sunday morning to try to collect flour from a few United Nations trucks. They hadn't eaten bread for four days. Abu Sidu described dense crowds moving toward the aid trucks while Israeli forces were stationed nearby. He, along with four other eyewitnesses speaking to Mada Masr, said that it wasn't until aid seekers converged around the convoy that Israeli troops opened fire on the desperate crowds. Eighty-six people were killed at the site on Sunday, Zaher al-Wahidi, director of the Health Ministry's Health Information Unit in Gaza, told Mada Masr. Footage released by the Israeli military, filmed around 200 meters from the scene. Source: IOF Spokesperson Avichay Adraee Israel's four-month siege has created mass-starvation conditions in the Gaza Strip, where most Palestinians now rely entirely on aid to access food, the World Food Program (WFP) said Sunday in a statement on the 'countless lives' lost to Israeli fire at Zikim. The few goods available on the market are sold at soaring prices, it added. The 'flour massacre' at Zikim marked yet another fatal attack on aid seekers at Gaza Humanitarian Foundation aid distribution points across central and southern Gaza.. Thirteen aid seekers were killed on Sunday in the south near a GHF distribution center north of Rafah, Wahidi said, adding that, since the GHF began operating in May, the death toll among aid seekers has reached 1,021. Civilians have no choice, however, but to risk the journey to collect aid. 'I was overcome by my children's hunger,' Emad Eissa told Mada Masr, describing his decision to approach the Waha area, a dangerous zone where Israeli forces are stationed near Zikim. He found thousands already gathered at the spot, waiting for the flour trucks. Ismail Abu Dan, who also approached Waha, voiced the same need. 'I was just trying to find food for my children,' he said. When the trucks arrived, they eventually stopped about 200 meters from the soldiers' positions. According to the World Food Program, the convoy comprised 25 trucks carrying vital food aid. Eissa said Israeli soldiers allowed the crowds to approach the trucks in Waha. Ismail Massoud, who was also among the crowd, described hearing the soldiers order them over loudspeakers to come forward with their hands raised to collect flour. He raised his hands and moved with the others, but as soon as they reached the trucks, heavy fire broke out. Dozens were killed or wounded within moments, he told Mada Masr. Eissa described witnessing tanks and quadcopter fire that sent hundreds of the wounded and companions of the killed screaming and wailing. Israeli sniper fire also targeted the waiting aid seekers, according to the WFP. Abu Sidu, who was a little farther away at the Sudaniyya roundabout a few kilometers from the crossing, said Israeli fire also targeted that area, though it was more intense near the crossing. People still waited for the chance to access some of the aid. 'Every time we tried to move forward, they shot at us. When the gunfire let up, we'd try again,' Abu Sidu said. There were only two options: 'Either you take the flour or you get shot.' 'We never faced this level of direct fire before,' he continued, comparing Sunday's incident to previous times he had gone to collect aid from trucks. The soldiers continued to kill and injure civilians from the moment they arrived until their retreat. As people fled 'each in a different direction,' Abu Sidu lost sight of his two brothers, who had travelled with him from Sheikh Radwan that morning. The three had 'dragged their feet' over the five kilometers from their home, weak from hunger after four days without bread. 'People were dying, getting trampled. Children were falling and getting lost underfoot,' he said. Carts pulled by animals carried away piles of the wounded and dead. Abu Sidu began inspecting the shoes and clothes of the dead to see if his brothers were among them. 'You sift through bodies asking yourself, 'Is this him? No, it's not,'' he said. He eventually returned home around noon 'to save his own skin,' he said. Two hours later, his brothers made it back and confirmed that the shooting had continued after they left. Many of his neighbors spent those same hours in suspense, as their relatives had also gone to Zikim and hadn't returned, prompting searches that stretched into the night. 'One of our neighbors was thought to be dead until he came back at 10 pm, saying he'd been trapped and hiding behind a barrier,' Abu Sidu said. Abu Dan described hiding during the massacre behind a mound near Waha, before later fleeing back to Gaza City. The Israeli military's only comment on the incident was to claim its troops withheld fire, citing 45 seconds of video footage from the incident. Aid is now a matter of life or death for the hundreds of thousands in Gaza, around one in three of whom are currently eating only every few days, the WFP said in its Sunday statement. 'Only a massive scale-up in food aid distributions can stabilize this spiraling situation,' the WFP said. Twenty-nine nations issued a call Monday night for an immediate ceasefire, condemning 'the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food,' and calling on Israel to uphold international humanitarian law.
Al-Ahram Weekly
15 hours ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Israeli forces abduct senior Gaza doctor, kill journalist near Red Cross field hospital - War on Gaza
Israeli forces abducted one of Gaza's most senior medical officials and killed multiple civilians, including a well-known journalist, in a deadly raid near a Red Cross field hospital in Rafah on Tuesday. According to local sources and Palestinian media outlets, a special unit of the Israeli army launched an operation near an International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) field hospital west of Khan Younis. Witnesses say Israeli commandos opened fire on civilians sitting outside a nearby cafeteria before targeting an ambulance escorting Dr. Marwan Shafiq Al-Hams, the director of field hospitals in Gaza and former head of the Mohammed Yousef Al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah. Among the victims of the gunfire was journalist Tamer al-Zaanin. Another journalist, Ibrahim Abu Sh'aiba, was wounded in the same incident. The ambulance driver accompanying Dr. Al-Hams also sustained injuries after Israeli forces fired on the vehicle. Dr. Al-Hams was forcibly taken by Israeli forces and transported to an interrogation centre in Rafah, according to Quds News Network and the Gaza Ministry of Health. Hamas condemns the raid In a statement, Hamas accused Israel of executing a deliberate campaign to dismantle Gaza's health infrastructure and intimidate medical personnel. "The fascist occupation's abduction of Dr. Marwan Al-Hams ... represents a deliberate escalation in the ongoing criminal targeting of the medical sector and its personnel through killing, detention, and terror," the group said. Hamas added that Israel bears full responsibility for Dr. Al-Hams' life and the safety of hundreds of detained medical professionals held in unknown or inhumane conditions. The group urged international institutions, including the ICRC and the World Health Organization (WHO), to condemn the attack and demand the immediate release of detained doctors and paramedics. Widespread outcry from health officials The Gaza Ministry of Health issued a scathing statement, calling the abduction of Al-Hams a direct attack on the humanitarian sector and a grave breach of international humanitarian law, including provisions safeguarding medical workers and infrastructure in times of war. "This unprecedented act represents a serious escalation and a direct attack on the voice of the sick, the hungry, and the suffering in the Gaza Strip," the Ministry said. It emphasized that the raid fits into a pattern of systemic targeting of medical facilities and personnel since the onset of Israel's genocidal war in October 2023. Al-Hams: A voice of medical resistance Dr Marwan Shafiq Al-Hams was not just an administrator. A trained emergency medicine specialist, he had emerged as a vocal figure in Gaza's medical community since the war began. As director of field hospitals, he became a key conduit between collapsing health facilities and the few remaining international aid networks still functioning in the Strip. Earlier this month, Al-Hams warned that 47 percent of essential medicines in Gaza had been fully depleted, and that fuel stocks were insufficient to keep health facilities operating for even a single day. Speaking to the BBC in June, he described the chaos inside Gaza's Nasser Medical Complex: "We originally had space for 25 beds," he said. "Now we have 42 patients hospitalized in the intensive care unit. They need blood, and we cannot find any." In May, Al-Hams participated in a legal and advocacy webinar titled: Starvation as a Weapon: International Legal Responsibilities and the Diplomatic Convoy to Confront Deliberate Famine in Gaza. His presentation drew a grim picture of Gaza's healthcare system, saying, 'Hospitals are overflowing with patients and the wounded, especially in intensive care and specialized units. There are no free beds — the only way a bed becomes available is if someone dies.' Health system under siege The raid marks only the latest in a long line of attacks on Gaza's healthcare infrastructure. A May 2025 report by Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) recorded over 1,400 healthcare workers killed since the war began. Israeli bombardment obliterated entire departments of hospitals, and over a third of Gaza's hospitals are no longer operational. 'Despite being protected under international law, Gaza's healthcare workers are being erased before the world's eyes,' MAP reported. Similarly, leading Gaza paediatrician Dr Hussam Abu Safiya remains held in Ofer Prison—infamous for its harsh conditions—in critical condition after over six months in Israeli detention, his lawyer said to media outlets in early July. Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, was abducted by Israeli forces in December as part of a wave of arrests targeting Gaza's health workers. Once weighing 100 kilograms, he has reportedly lost over 40 kilograms due to abuse, solitary confinement, and denial of medical care, according to his legal team. As of July 2025, over half of all functioning health facilities are located in areas under Israeli evacuation orders, making them virtually inaccessible to displaced populations. Mobile clinics and field hospitals, like the one Dr Al-Hams was visiting at the time of his abduction, have become some of the last lifelines. According to the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Office, Israel's ongoing attacks on medical institutions amount to a near-total collapse of Gaza's healthcare system. In a December 2024 report, the UN documented a consistent pattern of deadly strikes near hospitals and clinics, leaving patients—many of them critically ill children—without access to care. Journalism under fire The death of Tamer al-Zaanin has further underscored the deadly risks faced by media professionals in Gaza. According to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS), at least 229 journalists have been killed since October 2023, making Gaza the most dangerous place on Earth for journalists today. International press freedom groups, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), have compiled evidence indicating that the targeting of journalists is systematic. CPJ Program Director Carlos Martinez de la Serna said, 'Since the war in Gaza started, journalists have been paying the highest price – their lives – for their reporting. Without protection, equipment, international presence, communications, or food and water, they are still doing their crucial jobs to tell the world the truth.' Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Daily News Egypt
16 hours ago
- Daily News Egypt
Famine kills more Gaza children as Israel tightens siege amid global outrage
In Gaza, children are now dying not from bombs, but from empty stomachs. On the 654th day of Israel's war, starvation has become an accelerating killer across the besieged enclave, as border crossings remain sealed and humanitarian aid is blocked. The Gaza Health Ministry reported that 19 people—including four-year-old Razan Abu Zahir, who spent half her life under bombardment—died of hunger in the past 24 hours. Razan joins at least 70 children who have succumbed to starvation since the conflict began. Alongside famine, Israeli airstrikes killed 27 Palestinians and wounded others, according to hospital officials. For the first time since the war began, Israeli forces—including engineering and armoured units from the Golani Brigade—launched a ground incursion into southern Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. Army Radio reported the operation could last weeks. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) declared that starving civilians is a war crime that must never be used as a weapon. OCHA added that 88% of Gaza's territory is now under Israeli evacuation orders, affecting around 2.1 million people who have already been forcibly displaced multiple times. In apparent retaliation for OCHA's condemnation, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar refused to renew the visa of Jonathan Whittall, who heads OCHA's office in the occupied Palestinian territories, effectively expelling him. The siege has also crippled Gaza's health system. Hamas said Israeli forces abducted Dr. Marwan Al-Hams, director of field hospitals in Gaza, while he was visiting a Red Cross facility in Rafah. Soldiers reportedly fired on the ambulance carrying him, killing several civilians, including journalist Tamer Al-Za'anin. Hamas urged the international community, including the Red Cross and WHO, to condemn the attack and press for the release of detained medical staff. Meanwhile, Gaza Municipality warned of an imminent catastrophe after the shutdown of the city's main desalination plant and water pipelines, leaving large areas completely without water. The Gaza Health Ministry reported a total of 134 deaths (including four recovered bodies) and 1,155 injuries over the past 24 hours. Since 7 October 2023, the death toll has risen to 59,029, with 142,135 wounded. The blockade has drawn sharp criticism abroad. Belgium's King Philippe condemned the severe humanitarian violations in Gaza as 'a disgrace to humanity' and urged the UN Secretary-General to act immediately. Germany criticised the so-called 'Gaza Humanitarian Foundation,' saying its aid mechanisms fail to reach civilians, and called on Israel to comply with international humanitarian law and allow aid agencies to operate freely. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the humanitarian situation as unbearable and renewed calls for an immediate ceasefire. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan warned that Gaza's people 'will not surrender' and said Israel will ultimately be undone by its own ambitions. Inside Israel, former Israeli army Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon broke ranks with the military establishment, warning that forced evacuations, demolitions, and starvation in Gaza amount to war crimes and violate Israel's moral values. 'These are breaches of everything we stand for,' he posted on X (formerly Twitter). The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) repeated its call to lift the blockade, revealing that food prices in Gaza have surged fortyfold. 'We have enough food outside Gaza to feed the entire population for over three months,' the agency said. 'Lift the siege and let the aid in—safely and at scale.' UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese compared Israel's deliberate starvation of two million civilians and killing of children to Nazi atrocities. Reflecting on the death of a disabled man from hunger, she wrote: 'Our generation was taught that Nazism was the ultimate evil—and it was. Today, a state is starving millions and shooting children for sport under the protection of democracies and dictatorships alike. This is the new abyss of brutality.' Meanwhile, Israeli Settlement Minister Orit Strook called for widening military operations even at the risk of Israeli hostages' lives. 'You can't win a war like this. We must fight a decisive battle, even if it endangers the captives,' she said in a radio interview. As the siege tightens, the humanitarian collapse is worsening. The UN warns that nearly all of Gaza is either under evacuation orders or Israeli military control, pushing millions into an ever-shrinking strip of land. UNRWA says children are 'withering before our eyes' from hunger and dehydration, while doctors can do little but watch them slip away.
