Kuwait Reconstructs 19 Health Centers Destroyed by ISIS

The Reconstruction Fund for Areas Affected by Terrorist Operations (REFATO) Logo
The Reconstruction Fund for Areas Affected by Terrorist Operations (REFATO) Logo
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Kuwait Reconstructs 19 Health Centers Destroyed by ISIS

The Reconstruction Fund for Areas Affected by Terrorist Operations (REFATO) Logo
The Reconstruction Fund for Areas Affected by Terrorist Operations (REFATO) Logo

The Reconstruction Fund for Areas Affected by Terrorist Operations (REFATO) signed an agreement with a Kuwaiti company on Wednesday to begin the reconstruction of 19 health centers in five Iraqi provinces affected by terrorist operations and the war against ISIS.

The signing ceremony was held in Baghdad, between head of REFATO Mustafa al-Hiti and representative of Kuwaiti company Nidal al-Salami.

The Kuwaiti company, in cooperation with the Engineering Advisory Office of Anbar University, will complete the reconstruction of the medical centers in Anbar, Nineveh, Salaheddin, Diyala and northern Babil governorates. The $15 million project is part of the $100 million grant from Kuwait.

In a brief statement after the signing al-Hiti said that the reconstruction fund he heads is the first beneficiary of the Kuwait conference. The reconstruction of the health centers is the first project that was launched few weeks after the conference concluded and is expected to be completed within one year.

He revealed that a REFATO delegation went to Kuwait this month to sign the remainder of the $85 million grant, which is also earmarked for the reconstruction of 18 hospitals and 11 health centers.

For her part, the representative of the Kuwaiti company indicated the Office will restore, rebuild and supervise the process of reconstruction of all health centers in the affected areas and work on the implementation within one year.

REFATO communication consultant, Majda Salman announced that Kuwait Development Fund is the donor of $100 million grant and has chosen the Kuwaiti Advisory Office and the Advisory Office at Anbar University.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Salman said that concerning other projects and financial grants from other countries at the Kuwait conference, officials make no statement about promises, but about final decisions.

"Yes, there are many promises and allocations from different countries, but we will not discuss them. A committee of the government's General Secretariat will follow up the issue of grants," she added.

Salman downplayed claims that the fund will be part of possible corruption cases. She said the projects are known and announced, and the Kuwaiti company has already worked in most areas of Iraq, oversaw the construction of schools, and has considerable experience in this field.



Israeli Missile Hits Gaza Children Collecting Water

A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
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Israeli Missile Hits Gaza Children Collecting Water

A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
A Palestinian woman reacts as a young man carries the body of her child killed in an Israeli strike, in front of Gaza City's Maamadani (Baptist) hospital on July 13, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

At least eight Palestinians, most of them children, were killed and more than a dozen were wounded in central Gaza when they went to collect water on Sunday, local officials said.

The Israeli military said the missile had intended to hit an Islamic Jihad militant in the area but that a malfunction had caused it to fall "dozens of meters from the target".

"The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved civilians," it said in a statement, adding that the incident was under review.

The strike hit a water distribution point in Nuseirat refugee camp, killing six children and injuring 17 others, said Ahmed Abu Saifan, an emergency physician at Al-Awda Hospital.

Water shortages in Gaza have worsened sharply in recent weeks, with fuel shortages causing desalination and sanitation facilities to close, making people dependent on collection centers where they can fill up their plastic containers.

Hours later, 12 people were killed by an Israeli strike on a market in Gaza City, including a prominent hospital consultant, Ahmad Qandil, Palestinian media reported. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the attack.

Gaza's health ministry said on Sunday that more than 58,000 people had been killed since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in October 2023, with 139 people added to the death toll over the past 24 hours.

Negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire appeared to be deadlocked, with the two sides divided over the extent of an eventual Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave, Palestinian and Israeli sources said at the weekend.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to convene ministers late on Sunday to discuss the latest developments in the talks, an Israeli official said.

The indirect talks over a US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire are being held in Doha, but optimism that surfaced last week of a looming deal has largely faded, with both sides accusing each other of intransigence.

Netanyahu in a video he posted on Telegram on Sunday said Israel would not back down from its core demands - releasing all the hostages still in Gaza, destroying Hamas and ensuring Gaza will never again be a threat to Israel.