the last hospital in Gaza

Al Ahli Hospital forced to close as crisis continues

“Hospitals are sacred places where the sick and suffering come to receive healing and care. For more than nine months, healthcare workers in Gaza, including those at Al Ahli Hospital, have put their lives in danger by providing basic services under the worst conditions and with limited and inadequate supplies." - Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Canon, Exec Director, Churches for Middle East Peace

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The Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza, under care of the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem, has long been an honored ecumenical partner of Week of Compassion through Global Ministries. Across years of repeated and ongoing crisis, Al Ahli has been resilient and steadfast in offering healing support on-site in the midst of it all.

In the last few days, the hospital has been forced to close amid escalating conflict, military incursions, and the declaration of the area around the hospital as a Red Zone, requiring immediate evacuation: "To our great dismay, our hospital is now out of operation at a time when its services are in very significant demand and where injured and sick people have few other options for places to receive urgent medical care." (See the full letter from the Diocese below.)

Dr. Peter Makari, Global Ministries' Global Relations Minister - Middle East and Europe, shared with Week of Compassion: 

"We actually met with the Episcopal Diocese just before this news broke. They spoke of the good and continuing work that Al-Ahli staff were doing to continue to provide services, and that al-Ahli, as the only hospital still functioning in Gaza, was the place where other doctors from other hospitals were volunteering. Inspiring. Then we got this news."

Churches for Middle East Peace issued a statement in the wake of the news about al Ahli's closure, saying in part:

"Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) stands with the Diocese of Jerusalem in expressing dismay at the closure of Al Ahli Arab Anglican Hospital in Gaza. The closure of the hospital, the evacuation, and the declaration of the area as a red zone, in addition to the firing upon the ambulance, are all unacceptable violations of humanitarian international law. International law demands that health establishments and units, including hospitals, should not be attacked." The full statement from CMEP is on the Global Ministries site.

Week of Compassion joins with Disciples and our ecumenical community to pray fiercely for these faithful partners, their critical work, their safety and shelter, and for the ongoing struggle for the healing of the nations.