In its battle against Hamas, the Israeli army entered the largest hospital in Gaza City on Wednesday evening. Army units would “carry out a precise and targeted operation in a specific area of Shifa Hospital,” the military said. “We call on all Hamas terrorists in hospital to surrender.”
The action was based “on intelligence information and operational needs,” according to a message from the Israeli military on Platform X. It emphasized that they wanted to protect civilians in the hospital. The advancing troops also included doctors and Arabic speakers. They are specially trained to ensure that no harm occurs to civilians used as human shields.
Hamas had been publicly warned several times that continued use of the hospital would undermine its protected status under international law. On Tuesday, the responsible authorities in Gaza were again told that all military activities within the hospital must end within twelve hours. “Unfortunately that didn’t happen.”
“Surgical and emergency rooms also stormed”
“The occupying army is now in the basement and is searching it. “They are inside the complex shooting and throwing explosives,” said a spokesman for the Gaza health authority, which is controlled by the terrorist organization Hamas. The army first stormed the operating and emergency rooms, Mohammed Zakout, head of hospitals in the Gaza Strip, told Arabic television channel Al Jazeera. The authority had previously reported that the western part of the hospital had been hit and explosions had occurred. The information could not be independently verified.
The White House distanced itself from the military action. “We do not support airstrikes on any hospital and do not want to see firefights in any hospital,” a representative of the US National Security Council said on Tuesday evening (local time). Hospitals and patients “must be protected.”
US: “Hamas control hub in hospital”
Hamas had previously blamed US President Joe Biden for the military action. Washington gave the Israeli attack a “green light” on Tuesday, saying the hospital was being used by Hamas for military purposes. In fact, the Israeli attack came a few hours after the communications director of the National Security Council in Washington, John Kirby, said that Hamas was operating a “command and control node” from the hospital. “They have weapons stored there and they are prepared to respond to an Israeli military operation against the facility,” Kirby said.
The Israeli military confirmed Wednesday morning that the ground offensive was aimed at defeating the terrorist organization Hamas and freeing the kidnapped Israeli hostages. “Israel is at war with Hamas, not with the civilians in Gaza,” the report said. The military also emphasized that it had facilitated extensive evacuations from the hospital and had been in constant dialogue with hospital authorities.
“Maybe the control center”
Israeli Army spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner told CNN that the hospital and complex were for Hamas “a central hub of its operations, perhaps even its beating heart and perhaps even its control center.”
The Israeli military has long accused Hamas of setting up its military headquarters in tunnels beneath the hospital and has published videos and photos as evidence. The terrorist organization rejected the allegations and described the recordings as fake. She also described the American information as “lies.” The facilities would not be used “as shelters for captured Israeli soldiers or as command centers.” “We reiterate our call for the United Nations to establish an international commission to inspect all hospitals in the Gaza Strip,” the report said.
Thousands are stuck
There has been heavy fighting in the area around the largest clinic in the Gaza Strip for days. According to the UN, at least 2,300 people – patients, workers and refugees – are trapped on the hospital grounds. US President Biden on Monday called on Israel to take the hospital into account during the fighting in the Gaza Strip: “The hospital must be protected.”
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on Tuesday called for a “safe evacuation” of patients from hospitals in the Gaza Strip. These must be done in front of an ‘independent’ and ‘respected’ organisation. Miller said the Israeli government agreed, but the question was whether Hamas would let the patients go or continue to use them as “human shields.”
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
