Israel's Ben Gurion Hospital Serving 'Muslim, Jew or Christian' in Middle of War

Israel ramped up its anti-terror campaign in Gaza over the weekend following October's horrific terrorist attack, and while protests supporting Hamas are occurring worldwide – one bright spot has been the hospital at Ben Gurion University.

On October 27th, Israel's military invaded Gaza, pushing miles into the territory to root out Hamas. 

Concurrently, protests supporting the radical Islamic terrorist group Hamas have broken out on college campuses and cities across the U.S., Europe, and beyond.

CBN News spoke with Prof. Daniel Chamovitz, the president of Ben Gurion University and Hospital, in Southern Israel.  The university has had to postpone classes because most of its students were called up to fight.

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Pointing to widespread antisemitic protests on college campuses around the U.S. and the world, Chamovitz said, "It's so intellectually dishonest, so morally dishonest, without any integrity. In what world of any type of liberal academic atmosphere is that type of behavior considered a proper protest."  

More than 500 volunteers showed up here after the Oct. 7 attacks to help the University hospital treat the wounded, some of whom were captured Hamas fighters.  

But that's not the first time they've treated Gazans here.

"Under normal conditions, there's a daily flow of people needing advanced medical aid out of Gaza into Israel," Chamovitz explained. 

He says an aid organization run by Jewish people who lived in the kibbutzim that were attacked by Hamas near the Gaza border used to help bring residents from Gaza into Israel for treatments. He says many of those Israelis who were helping Palestinians are now dead or being held hostage. 

"The irony is, many of the hostages who were kidnapped in Gaza were the exact same people who on a daily basis were bringing children with cancer, needing eye surgery, to hospitals throughout Israel," Chamovitz said.

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The basement of the hospital's administration building is now being used as an elementary school and kindergarten for 75 kids from the surrounding area who have been forcibly displaced by this war. 

They've also been out of school for the last three weeks, but now they're back. And the reason that they're doing their school here in the basement is because it's also the bomb shelter.

Ben Gurion has helped set up schools for hundreds of displaced children, many of whom are struggling to process what they've seen. 

"The things that they witnessed, we haven't seen since the Holocaust," Chamovitz said.

Through it all, the hospital has continued its life-saving work, providing care for all in need – a ray of light despite the protests and darkness.

Chamovitz added, "We're here to make the world a better place and our hospitals are some of the best in Israel. And if someone needs life-saving surgery, it doesn't matter if they're Muslim, Jew or Christian, they should get the services that they need."