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It's unclear when desperately needed aid will be allowed into Gaza

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

It's unclear when desperately needed aid will be allowed into Gaza.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Food, water and other critical supplies are running low for the more than two million people trapped in the Gaza Strip.

MOHAMED GHNEIM: Shortage in the medical supplies, especially with the emergency supplies and the trauma supplies and equipment that we are using in the trauma room.

MARTÍNEZ: That's Dr. Mohamed Ghneim. He's an emergency room doctor who was working at the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital where an explosion earlier this week killed several hundred people. He's since moved to a nearby facility to tend to many of the people injured in the blast.

GHNEIM: I can say that the majority of the casualties, they are civilians from womens and kids.

MARTIN: Palestinian officials say that more than 12,000 people have been injured since the war began. Doctors like Mohamed Ziara say the work is constant.

MOHAMED ZIARA: I've been here for about 10 days continuously. I didn't go home. We deal with an unimaginable number of patients.

MARTÍNEZ: And sometimes while doctors are performing life-saving surgeries and tending to the wounded, they receive heartbreaking news about their own loved ones.

ZIARA: We are trying to keep our things together and cope with the situation. But when you receive the news about your friend killed, you can't keep on.

MARTÍNEZ: More than 3,700 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel began its bombardment of the enclave in response to the attack by the militant group Hamas. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.