The director-general of the World Health Organization has called for an end to attacks on Gaza hospitals.

“Gaza’s hospitals have once again become a battlefield and the health system is under serious threat,” Dr. Tedros said.

His warning came after the last functioning hospital in besieged northern Gaza, Kamal Adwan, was attacked and forcibly evacuated by the Israeli military on Friday, and two hospitals in Gaza City were also attacked on Sunday.

The military said two of the sites were used as Hamas command centers but denied attacking a third.

Dr Tedros also joined human rights groups and relatives in calling for the immediate release of Kamal Adwan’s supervisor, Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, who is detained by Israeli forces.

The Israeli military said on Saturday that his hospital was a Hamas “stronghold” and that it killed about 20 “terrorists” in the attack and detained 240 others. The statement added that Dr. Abu Safiya, who was “suspected to be a Hamas terrorist”, was among those questioned.

The military has provided no evidence for the accusations, which Hamas considers “lies.”

US-based MedGlobal condemned the detention of Gaza’s chief doctor, Dr Abu Safiya, saying it was “not only unjust” but also a “violation of international humanitarian law that upholds the protection of medical personnel in conflict zones”.

His family expressed concerns about his health, saying he was still recovering from serious injuries sustained in an attack last month and that he was likely suffering from a cold as he was forced to take off his clothes.

Dr Abu Safiya’s son Elias told BBC Arabic that authorities had confirmed reports that he was being held at the Stetaiman military base in southern Israel, where Israeli forces have taken many prisoners from the Gaza Strip. The detainees were interrogated.

Several Palestinians released from detention facilities over recent weekends also said they had seen Dr. Abu Safiya there or heard his name read out. According to CNN.

Dr Tedros said Kamal Adwan was out of service after the raid and its critically ill patients had been transferred to a “non-functioning” Indonesian hospital, which he warned was severely damaged and unable to provide care.

He said: “Amid the ongoing chaos in northern Gaza, WHO and partners today provided essential medical and hygiene supplies, food and water to Indonesian hospitals and transferred 10 critically ill patients to Gaza City. Forensic Hospital.”

“Four patients were detained during the transfer process. We urge Israel to ensure their health care needs and rights are upheld.”

The Hamas health ministry in Gaza said one of the detained patients was in critical condition and seven patients and 10 medical staff remained in Indonesian hospitals.

On October 6, Israeli forces launched a large-scale ground offensive against the northern towns of Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun, saying they were preventing Hamas from regrouping there. The United Nations says the areas are under a near-total siege, with Israeli forces largely denying humanitarian aid for more than 11 weeks.

Dr. Tedros also said that Al Ahli Hospital and Wafa Rehabilitation Hospital in Gaza City “also faced attacks” and were both damaged.

An Israeli attack on the upper floors of Wafa hospital on Sunday killed seven people and seriously injured others, according to the Hamas-run civil defense agency.

The Israeli military said the attack targeted Hamas militants who were using the building as a command and control center. It added that the building was not a hospital at the time.

But an eyewitness told the BBC there were patients and staff inside the hospital.

A fourth-year medical student said she and her colleagues were in the hospital preparing to take exams when the hospital was bombed.

“The smoke was billowing and we almost suffocated. Panes from the damaged windows fell on us. We hid under the table and ran away,” she added.

“When we came down the stairs, we saw patients in wheelchairs and some people being carried. Our professor had a head injury and was bleeding, and some other colleagues also suffered minor injuries.”

The injured were taken to Ahli Hospital, which Palestinian media said came under Israeli shelling early Sunday.

Video clips posted online There appeared to be damage to the top floor of a building at the scene.

However, the Israeli military denied on Monday that its forces had attacked the hospital.

One displaced person living near Al Ahli hospital told BBC Arabic he feared it would be the next target of Israeli forces.

“If they trap us here, where can we go? How long will this misery last? We have been displaced about six or seven times,” he said. “They bombed all the houses, schools and hospitals. We no longer have a safe haven.”

The ICRC also warned on Monday that hostilities in and around hospitals “have devastated northern Gaza’s health system and put civilians at serious risk of being unable to receive life-saving care.”

“In conflict situations, medical facilities are protected and civilians are protected. These need to be respected and that is what we continue to call for,” spokesperson Sarah Davies told the BBC.

“More aid, more supplies need to be able to come into Gaza and be distributed safely, and civilians need to have safe access to the basic services they need to survive.”

Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas after it launched an unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

Since then, more than 45,540 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the region’s health ministry.