UOSSM Canada appeals for an immediate end to the drone attacks and targeted bombing, and to lift the siege on the Indonesian Hospital, one of the few remaining hospitals in North Gaza, and demands imm
Where:
Aviation Hall B, The International Centre, 6900 Airport Rd, Mississauga, ON L4V 1E8, Canada.
Conference Time: 5:45 PM
MISSISSAUGA, ON, May 18, 2025 /CNW/ – UOSSM Canada is appealing to the international community to demand an immediate end to the drone attacks, bombings, and of the siege laid on the Indonesian Hospital on May 16, 2025. Over the past 24 hours, the Indonesian hospital has been surrounded by armed drones, firing at anyone in the vicinity, and at patients, one of whom has been killed.
The hospital, operated jointly by UOSSM Canada and UOSSM USA, is now the last lifeline for hundreds of wounded civilians in desperate need of surgical and medical care.
The Indonesian Hospital was serving 500 patients daily when the Israeli army demanded evacuation last week, forcing sick and disabled patients with iv poles, oxygen masks, open wounds, and amputations out onto the street – only 40 people remain in the hospital and doctors and medical staff are refusing to leave.
Security threats, drone attacks, and a complete blockade of entry and exit have rendered the hospital entirely non-operational. The surroundings of the hospital have been targeted so closely as to cause walls to crack and ceilings to collapse. Attempts to reach or evacuate wounded individuals in the hospital's vicinity have been met with live fire, effectively turning the facility into a kill zone for the most vulnerable.
''Quadcopter' drones are surrounding us. An Israeli drone targeted a person near the hospital, which is located in the northern Gaza Strip. Up until now, we have been unable to move to rescue him. The drones are firing at anyone who moves in the vicinity of the hospital and are preventing entry and exit.' said Dr. Marwan Al-Sultan, Hospital Director.
UOSSM is calling on all governments, international humanitarian organizations, and UN agencies to respect the sanctity of life and international law and immediately stop the drone attacks. We call for the safe reopening of the Indonesian Hospital. The Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law, including Article 12 of the First Geneva Convention, clearly state that 'medical units must be respected and protected at all times and shall not be the object of attack.' Furthermore, every patient has the right to receive medical treatment without delay or discrimination, as affirmed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the World Medical Association's Declaration of Geneva. Finally, international monitors are urgently needed to prevent further illegal attacks and to document what has occurred.
All this is happening in the context of a larger siege on Gaza. The 77-day complete blockade of food and humanitarian supplies means that many are dying daily from lack of medical care, food, water, and electricity.
UOSSM Canada and Islamic Relief Canada reiterate: Healthcare is not a target. Hospitals must be protected. Patients must be treated. All lives must be equally valued.
We call on the Canadian government, the United Nations, and all people of conscience to use every diplomatic and humanitarian effort to demand the immediate cessation of drone attacks and live fire and to lift the siege on the Indonesian Hospital.
Speakers:
Dr. Aliya Khan
Dr. Catherine Clase
Dr. Maher Saqqur
Dr. Anas Al Kassem
Dr. Amgad Al Sherief
Signed By:UOSSM Canada
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
9 hours ago
- The Sun
Palestinian boy who lost nine siblings arrives in Italy for treatment
MILAN: A group of 17 Palestinian children, including an 11-year-old boy who lost nine siblings in an Israel strike in Gaza last month, arrived in Italy on Wednesday for hospital treatment, accompanied by more than 50 family members. Adam Al-Najjar, who has multiple fractures, arrived with his mother at Milan's Linate airport where he was welcomed by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, before being transferred to the city's Niguarda Hospital. The plane that landed at Linate carried five other injured Palestinian minors, while 11 more arrived on flights to other Italian airports. The May 23 attack left Adam in a serious condition at Nasser Hospital, one of the few operational medical facilities in southern Gaza. Adam "is stable, has a head wound that is healing but his left arm is bad, the bones are fractured and the nerves damaged," his 36-year-old mother, Alaa al-Najjar, a paediatrician, told Italian newspaper la Repubblica. Adam's father, Hamdi al-Najjar, who was also a doctor, died a week after the attack. "The damage is in my left hand, there is a problem with the nerves, I can't feel my fingers. There's still a lot of pain," Adam told Turkish news agency Anadolu. A total of 70 Palestinians were set to arrive in Italy on three military aircraft that set off from Israel's Eilat airport, the Italian foreign ministry said earlier on Wednesday. The patients will be treated at hospitals in numerous cities including Milan, Rome, Florence and Bologna. According to the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) website, more than 15,000 children have reportedly been killed and over 34,000 injured in almost two years of war in Gaza. Including the latest operation, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government has so far brought 150 injured Palestinians from Gaza to Italy for treatment, the foreign ministry said. The Italian government has been a staunch supporter of Israel since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas-led militants that killed some 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages to Gaza, according to Israeli figures. In recent months, Rome has criticised the extent of the Israeli response, and expressed concern as the death toll in Gaza has mounted, while declining to apply sanctions. Italy was not among numerous European Union countries that called last month for a review of EU-Israeli economic and trade relations.
The Sun
9 hours ago
- The Sun
Italy Receives 17 Palestinian Children for Medical Care
MILAN: A group of 17 Palestinian children, including an 11-year-old boy who lost nine siblings in an Israel strike in Gaza last month, arrived in Italy on Wednesday for hospital treatment, accompanied by more than 50 family members. Adam Al-Najjar, who has multiple fractures, arrived with his mother at Milan's Linate airport where he was welcomed by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, before being transferred to the city's Niguarda Hospital. The plane that landed at Linate carried five other injured Palestinian minors, while 11 more arrived on flights to other Italian airports. The May 23 attack left Adam in a serious condition at Nasser Hospital, one of the few operational medical facilities in southern Gaza. Adam "is stable, has a head wound that is healing but his left arm is bad, the bones are fractured and the nerves damaged," his 36-year-old mother, Alaa al-Najjar, a paediatrician, told Italian newspaper la Repubblica. Adam's father, Hamdi al-Najjar, who was also a doctor, died a week after the attack. "The damage is in my left hand, there is a problem with the nerves, I can't feel my fingers. There's still a lot of pain," Adam told Turkish news agency Anadolu. A total of 70 Palestinians were set to arrive in Italy on three military aircraft that set off from Israel's Eilat airport, the Italian foreign ministry said earlier on Wednesday. The patients will be treated at hospitals in numerous cities including Milan, Rome, Florence and Bologna. According to the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) website, more than 15,000 children have reportedly been killed and over 34,000 injured in almost two years of war in Gaza. Including the latest operation, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government has so far brought 150 injured Palestinians from Gaza to Italy for treatment, the foreign ministry said. The Italian government has been a staunch supporter of Israel since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas-led militants that killed some 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages to Gaza, according to Israeli figures. In recent months, Rome has criticised the extent of the Israeli response, and expressed concern as the death toll in Gaza has mounted, while declining to apply sanctions. Italy was not among numerous European Union countries that called last month for a review of EU-Israeli economic and trade relations.
New Straits Times
21 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Israeli fire kills 41 in Gaza, many near an aid site, medics say
CAIRO: Israeli gunfire and airstrikes killed at least 41 Palestinians in Gaza today, most of them at an aid site operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the centre of the coastal territory, local health officials said. Medical officials at Shifa and Al-Quds Hospitals said at least 25 people were killed by Israeli gunfire as they approached the aid site near the former settlement of Netzarim, and dozens were wounded. The Israeli military said its forces fired warning shots overnight toward suspects who were advancing while posing a threat to the troops in the area of the Netzarim Corridor. "This is despite warnings that the area is an active combat zone. The IDF is aware of reports regarding individuals injured; the details are under review," it added. Later today, health officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip said at least six people were killed by Israeli gunfire as they approached another GHF site in Rafah further south, taking Wednesday's death toll to at least 41. A total of 163 people had already been killed and more than 1,000 wounded trying to reach the handful of aid sites operated by the foundation since it began work two weeks ago after a three-month blockade, according to Gaza's health ministry. The United Nations has condemned the killings. It said the blockade brought the Palestinian enclave to the brink of famine and that food supplies remain critically low. The foundation said earlier it was unaware of today's incident but that it is working closely with Israeli authorities to ensure safe passage routes are maintained, and that it is essential for Palestinians to closely follow instructions. "Ultimately, the solution is more aid, which will create more certainty and less urgency among the population," it said by email in response to Reuters questions. "There is not yet enough food to feed everyone in need in Gaza. Our current focus is to feed as many people as is safely possible within the constraints of a highly volatile environment." The U.N. and other aid groups have refused to supply aid via the foundation, which uses private contractors with Israeli military backup in what they say is a breach of humanitarian standards. Gaza health officials said 10 other people were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis in the south of the enclave. On Tuesday, when Gaza health officials said 17 people were killed near another GHF aid site in Rafah in southern Gaza, the army said it fired warning shots to distance "suspects" who were approaching the troops and posed a threat. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday there had been "significant progress" in efforts to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza, but that it was "too soon" to raise hopes that a deal would be reached. Despite efforts by the United States, Egypt, and Qatar to restore a ceasefire in Gaza, neither Israel nor Hamas has shown willingness to back down on core demands, with each side blaming the other for the failure to reach a deal. Two Hamas sources told Reuters they did not know about any new ceasefire offers. The war erupted after Hamas-led fighters took 251 hostages and killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, on October 7, 2023, Israel's single deadliest day.
