Israeli army besieges hospital in northern Gaza

The Israeli army has besieged Al-Awda Hospital in Jabalia in northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources and eyewitnesses said on Sunday.

It is the only hospital in the northern enclave that provides orthopedic, gynecological and obstetrics services.

The Israeli forces prevented residents and medical teams in the area from entering or leaving the hospital, causing difficulty in providing treatment services, Xinhua reported, citing sources.

Israel continued its attack on Jabalia on Saturday, accusing Hamas of "trying to rebuild its capabilities" in the area.

The Gaza health authorities warned of an acute shortage of medicines and medical consumables necessary to provide medical services like emergency operations and primary care. It said in a brief statement that some medicines have run out in hospitals and service places, calling on the UN and international institutions to work to provide medicines in light of the continued Israeli "aggression" and occupation of all Gaza Strip crossings.

Meanwhile, the Hamas media office accused the Israeli army of preventing the entry of approximately 3,000 aid trucks and 690 wounded and sick people from traveling to receive treatment in hospitals outside the Gaza Strip.

The office said that the Israeli army prevented the entry of food aid and medical supplies, the entry of fuel to hospitals, and the travel of the wounded and sick after occupying the Rafah crossing and closing the Kerem Shalom crossing for the 13th day in a row.

The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has risen to 35,456, the Gaza health authorities said in a press statement on Sunday.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Sunday announced the killing of a leading Hamas operative Azmi Abu Daqqa.

The IDF said in a statement that Israeli Air Force (IAF) aircraft, guided by intelligence, on Saturday attacked and killed Abu Daqqa, a prominent figure in Hamas' procurement department.

It noted that Abu Daqqa was actively involved in the "smuggling of weapons and funds in the Gaza Strip."

The statement added that over the past day, the IAF struck dozens of targets, including the killing of two tactical-level Hamas commanders who were preparing to attack IDF troops in Rafah.

The attack on the two commanders was carried out under the guidance of the Artillery Corps' Division 215, which consists of two regular battalions and a reserve one.

A 'controversial' pier

The U.S.-installed pier in the Gaza Strip is an infringement on Palestinian sovereignty, a senior Palestinian official said on Sunday.

Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), told Xinhua that "the U.S.-installed pier was established based on U.S. and Israeli unilateral decision without consulting with the Palestinian Authority (PA)."

It is "a real violation of the Palestinian sovereignty" as Gaza is a part of the Palestinian territories, Majalani said, adding that "it seems that the United States aims at putting us (PA and PLO) in an awkward position."

Instead of establishing such a "controversial" pier, Majdalani noted, "the United States should pressure Israel to open the borders and allow the humanitarian aid to enter to our people in the Gaza Strip."

Majdalani said that there are political goals that the U.S. is trying to achieve through this port, expressing his fear that the pier will mark the beginning of the displacement of "Palestinian people from the Gaza Strip across the sea, which is tantamount to the implementation of an Israeli plan that Israeli governments have always worked to achieve."

(With input from agencies)