British Red Cross delegate Kirstie Campbell reports back on the task of co-ordinating access for ambulances during Israel's incursion in the Zaitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City in May 2004:
An Israeli incursion in Zaitoun has resulted in the suspension of all normal activities of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), so that efforts can be focused on minimising the humanitarian consequences of the military operations.
Today is the second day of the incursion in Zaitoun.
Our urgent priority is to facilitate the passage of life-saving services, such as ambulances and fire engines, through military checkpoints to areas caught under the strict curfew.
All day, the ICRC Gaza office I am based in has been flooded with hundreds of calls from people affected by the curfew. From concerned family members desperate for news of their relatives, to journalists, embassies, and other anxious people seeking information.
There has even been a request from a farmer asking the ICRC to co-ordinate his entrance to the area to feed his cows.
The requests are recorded, prioritised and divided between the staff. As the curfew continues, additional needs such as water and food supplies threaten to become more of a priority.
Two ICRC teams have been working flat-out for the past 36 hours in Zaitoun to respond to the needs of the population. For those left homeless, items such as mattresses, blankets, cooking equipment and hygiene items were distributed.
Casualties mount
It is now 4pm. Two field officers, Saed and Nasser, and I take over the team shift until midnight. After a quick briefing we are on our own with four telephones ringing and news coming in by the minute.
We quickly get down to it and divide responsibilities. Saed and Nasser will take the incoming calls and co-ordinate with the emergency services, while I will liaise with the Israeli Civil Administration (Matak) to try to negotiate access for Palestinian Red Crescent ambulances.
We receive a call reporting that one man, Ramiz, has been shot in the head and needs urgent evacuation. The ICRC is Ramiz's last hope. His name is added to our list of casualties and I call the Matak liaison officer to update him on the situation.
One of our teams sets out to accompany two ambulances from the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) to an area just outside the combat zone. Also in the convoy is a fire engine and water and electricity engineers. They ask for the approval of the Israeli authorities to enter the area.
With the ICRC team on the ground accompanying the ambulance, the time and risk may be reduced because the ICRC has a long-established role as a neutral intermediary in Gaza. But entering this area in such circumstances remains a highly dangerous task.
After a while, the Israeli liaison officer gives the "green light" for one ambulance and the ICRC vehicle to enter the area. The PRCS ambulance will try to locate the sick and wounded, including Ramiz.
I am told that there is another casualty, a woman with a gunshot wound, also needing urgent evacuation. She has been treated by the Israeli army medics and will be brought to the ambulance when it arrives.
Fast-changing situation
The convoy starts to drive slowly into the area, the ICRC leading to distinguish the convoy to the Israeli troops. The PRCS ambulance follows behind.
As the convoy approaches the area they encounter heavy shooting between militants and the soldiers on opposite sides of the road ahead. The teams are forced to make an accelerated reverse out of the area in order not to get caught in the crossfire.
The convoy re-groups in a safe area. Everyone is quite shaken and on analysis both teams agree that this route is impassable and another solution must be found to remove the wounded.
Meanwhile Ramiz's family arrives at the office to inform us that he has died. They are very calm and politely request that the ICRC collect his body accompanied by his pregnant wife and one-year-old daughter.
As I take down the details, Saed takes a call reporting four more injured people with bullet wounds in the leg, hand and stomach. We pour over the map to identify their exact location and try to find a safer route in.
The area of hostilities is too small to be seen on the map, so details are essential when making the co-ordination. We establish various reference points that are known to all of the parties on the ground and use estimated distances from these points to the locations of the casualties.
The conflict is changing by the minute and some routes are blocked by sand or tanks, so our attempts to find routes are constantly frustrated. Nevertheless we persist.
Apprehensively we call the PRCS to see if any more ambulance teams are willing to risk entering the area. Amazingly there are still volunteers for the job.
Together we decide on a possible route and inform the Israeli liaison officer of the casualties, their location, the new PRCS team and the proposed route.
Rumours are circling that the Israeli troops will withdraw in the coming hours, however there appears to be no sign of this on the ground.
Meanwhile, news breaks that another Israeli tank has been blown up in Rafah and five soldiers killed. There are mixed emotions flying in the street outside the office. Many people fear what this attack will bring in the coming hours or days.
Finally, at 23:55 we receive a call informing us that the Israelis have started to withdraw. After confirming this information we contact the PRCS who instantly deploy all ambulances to the site.
The light is looming at the end of the tunnel as colleagues on the next shift arrive to take over responsibility. What remains is to follow up the cases, calling back the families to ensure them they are receiving the help they need.
The following morning, we are back to our 'normal' work and several teams have set out to make an assessment of the destruction and provide emergency assistance where necessary. Hospitals are reporting of hundreds of people wounded and tens of people killed in Zaitoun. Meanwhile the local media reports of continued incursions in Rafah and a rising casualty toll there.
As I watch the team leaving for Zaitoun, I hear a funeral procession pass the office and watch a body being carried, in traditional fashion, through the streets. The crowd is shouting in Arabic and shooting in the air. I feel sadness as we always wish we could have done more to prevent the casualties.
It is only after the procession has passed that Saed translates to me that actually the crowds are shouting thanks to the ICRC for its efforts and indeed that this young man whose body, wrapped in flags and held high, is that of Ramiz.
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