Israel Conducts Raid on Gaza Hospital: Disturbing Scenes Unfold

Israeli Forces Raid Gaza Hospital in Search of Hamas Operatives

Gaza City, Palestinian Territories: In a dramatic early morning operation, dozens of Israeli forces stormed part of Gaza’s largest hospital, Al-Shifa, in their ongoing battle against Hamas operatives. The hospital, already packed with patients and displaced people, has become the epicenter of fierce urban combat for days.

Wearing facemasks and firing guns into the air, the Israeli forces demanded that all men above the age of 16 raise their hands and surrender. The soldiers ordered the people sheltering inside the hospital to exit the building and move towards the courtyard. According to a journalist who has been in contact with AFP and took refuge inside the hospital, the soldiers described the raid as a “precise and targeted” operation against Hamas.

Both Israeli and Palestinian officials confirmed the overnight military operations at Al-Shifa, which has been subjected to days of deadly fighting and nearby aerial bombardments. Witnesses have described the conditions inside the hospital as horrific, with medical procedures being performed without anesthesia, families lacking food and water, and the stench of decomposing corpses filling the air.

As Israeli forces raced through the hospital corridors, hundreds of young men emerged from different wards, including the maternity section, which had been hit in a strike a few days ago. Israeli tanks also entered the hospital complex, including the main emergency department and other wards.

The Israeli army issued a statement describing the operation as “precise and targeted” against Hamas in a specific area of the facility. They also claimed to have delivered incubators, baby food, and medical supplies to the hospital during the operation, ensuring that they reach those in need.

Gaza’s Hamas government condemned the raid, accusing the Israeli army of committing a “war crime and crime against humanity.” Israel has surrounded Al-Shifa, claiming that it is being used by Hamas as a command center and a hideout for their commanders. The White House supported Israel’s claims, stating that US intelligence sources corroborated the existence of an operational “command and control node” buried under Al-Shifa by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Hamas has denied these allegations and emphasized the suffering inside the besieged clinic, which has been without electricity or fuel for generators due to the weeks-long Israeli siege of the Palestinian territory. The United Nations has expressed concern for the approximately 2,300 people, including patients, staff, and displaced civilians, trapped inside the hospital due to the ongoing fighting.

According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, 40 patients died in Al-Shifa on Tuesday alone. The hospital director reported that 179 bodies had been interred in a mass grave within the complex.

(Note: This story is published from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by NDTV staff, except for the headline.)