"End the bloodbath"

Gaza like apocalypse, EU chief diplomat appalled

A donkey cart transports household items as it passes destroyed buildings in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip.(Bild: APA/AFP/Omar AL-QATTAA)

The Secretary General of the aid organization Doctors Without Borders has described the situation in the Gaza Strip in drastic terms and sharply criticized the Israeli side. Meanwhile, EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell welcomed the release of the Israeli hostages during a military operation in the Gaza Strip - but at the same time expressed his horror at the reports of a "massacre of civilians".

"The scenes that our teams have been reporting from Gaza over the last few days are absolutely horrific. The only word I can think of to describe it is 'apocalyptic'," Christopher Lockyear told US broadcaster CNN on Saturday.

"People are being treated in other people's blood"
 With regard to medical care, he said: "We are in a situation where people are being treated in other people's blood."

On Platform X, the organization explained that following the recent "intense bombardment" in the center of the Gaza Strip, aid workers in Al-Aqsa and Nasser hospitals were confronted with an "overwhelming number of seriously injured patients, including many women and children". According to Palestinian reports, dozens of people were killed and many more injured as a result of an operation to free hostages in the center of the Gaza Strip on Saturday.

In an interview with CNN, Secretary-General Lockyear accused the Israeli side of spreading false information regarding humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip. He spoke of "a situation of extreme propaganda".

Borrell calls for an immediate end to the bloodbath
"The bloodbath must end immediately", Borrell also demanded on Saturday on Platform X. "The reports from Gaza about another massacre of civilians are appalling", Borrell explained. On the release of the abductees, he said: "We share the relief of their families and demand the release of all remaining hostages."

Israel's military had freed four people kidnapped from Israel in the center of the Gaza Strip on Saturday. According to an authority controlled by the Islamist Hamas, at least 210 Palestinians were killed in operations in the area. Around 400 people are also said to have been injured. The health authority, which is also controlled by Hamas, and medical circles in the Gaza Strip had previously spoken of 55 deaths. Israel's army spokesman Daniel Hagari, on the other hand, said in the evening that there were fewer than 100 casualties. The information could not initially be independently verified.