Gaza: Director of the Civil Defense in the Gaza Strip Brigadier General Raed Al Dahshan said that the continued ban on the entry of heavy machinery and equipment is preventing the recovery of approximately 10,000 bodies still buried under the rubble.
In a press statement on Friday, he confirmed that the Civil Defense has only managed to recover about 350 bodies so far, while thousands remain trapped beneath the debris. He emphasised that most of the bodies are known to their families, and that what is often recovered are merely skeletal remains due to the passage of time and the difficulty of rapid access.
He noted that the Civil Defense had lost about 85 percent of its equipment, and is now operating at only 5 to 7 percent of its pre-war capacity, resulting in a near-complete paralysis of the agency's operational capabilities.
He said that the crews were working with extremely rudimentary resources, often with their bare hands, adding that only one fire truck, one rescue vehicle, and one ambulance remain operational.
He revealed that the Civil Defense Service lost 142 martyrs from its staff while performing their humanitarian duty, and that 352 crew members were seriously injured, which permanently removed them from service, including amputations, permanent disabilities, and severe injuries.
