Jakarta NGO to rebuild Indonesian hospital as Palestinians return to north Gaza
JAKARTA: A Jakarta-based nongovernmental organization has committed to rebuilding the Indonesia Hospital in northern Gaza as Palestinians began returning to the area on Monday.
The Indonesia Hospital in Beit Lahiya, funded by the Indonesian NGO Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, was one of the first targets hit when Israel began its assault on Gaza in October 2023.
As relentless Israeli attacks pushed the enclave's healthcare system to the brink of collapse, the Indonesia Hospital had stood as one of the last functioning health facilities in the north.
'Since the war started, the Indonesia Hospital has served as one of the main healthcare centers for residents of Gaza in the north. It has been attacked multiple times, damaging parts of the building itself and also various health equipment,' Sarbini Abdul Murad, chairman of MER-C's board of trustees in Jakarta, told Arab News on Monday.
'We need to rebuild and fill it up with all the necessary health equipment … It is our moral commitment to rebuilding the hospital.'
Israel has frequently targeted medical facilities in the Gaza Strip, saying that they are used by Palestinian armed groups.
The Indonesia Hospital opened in 2015 and was officially inaugurated by the country's then-Vice President Jusuf Kalla in 2016.
The four-story general hospital stands on a 16,200 sq. meter plot of land near the Jabalia refugee camp in North Gaza, donated by the local government in 2009.
The hospital's construction and equipment were financed from donations of the Asia nation's people, as well as organizations including the Indonesian Red Cross Society.
Since it opened almost a decade ago, MER-C continued to send volunteers to help. A couple of them stayed in Gaza until late last year, as MER-C also sent medical volunteers to the besieged enclave since March as part of a larger emergency deployment led by the World Health Organization.
The Indonesia Hospital was treating about 1,000 people at one point during Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed more than 47,300 people and injured over 111,000.
'Many Indonesians are looking forward for the Indonesia Hospital to return to normal operations again, and this is the trust that MER-C keeps close because the hospital is a symbol of unity between Indonesians and Palestinians,' Murad said.
'Healthcare is an urgent need for Palestinians, so we want to offer our support here in our field of expertise.'
Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians began returning to the remains of their destroyed homes in north Gaza on Monday, after Israel opened the Netzarim corridor, a 7 km strip of land controlled by Israeli forces that cuts off the enclave's north from the rest of the territory.
'We hope Israel will continue to give access for Gaza residents to return to their homes in the north peacefully and not breach the ceasefire agreement in any way,' Murad said.
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