Palestinian Red Crescent says 19 of its medical staff killed by Israel since Oct. 7

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) on Thursday said the death toll of its medical staff, killed by the Israeli army in line of work in Gaza since Oct 7, has risen to 19.

The announcement came as it mourned two of its medical staff killed in Rafah on Wednesday when the Israeli army targeted their ambulance.

"PRCS teams were able to retrieve the bodies of paramedics Haitham Tubasi and Suhail Hassouna, who were targeted by the Israeli occupation (forces) last night in the Tel Sultan area west of Rafah," said the Red Crescent in a statement.

"With the martyrdom of paramedics Haitham Tubasi and Suhail Hassouna, the number of PRCS staff members killed since the beginning of the aggression on Gaza has risen to 19," the statement said.

It noted that the health workers were targeted by the Israeli forces while they were performing their humanitarian duties.

On Tuesday, the Health Ministry in Gaza said only one hospital remains operational in Rafah, while all other hospitals have ceased operations amid an Israeli offensive in the city.

Before the launch of the Israeli military operation against Rafah on May 6, the city was home to over 1.5 million displaced Palestinians who fled their areas across the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli onslaught that started on Oct. 7, 2023.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7 last year following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in the enclave.

More than 36,170 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, and over 81,400 injured, according to local health authorities.

Nearly eight months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in its latest ruling has ordered it to immediately halt its operation in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.