Early Wednesday morning, Israeli forces said they had entered “a certain part” of al-Shifa, Gaza City’s largest hospital. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claims that the Hamas terrorist group is maintaining a command centre inside the hospital.
The Israeli Defense Force has said that “this military operation is based on intelligence information and operational requirements.” The operation does not aim to harm hospital patients, medical staff or civilians, the IDF said in the statement.
Israeli Army Entered The Hospital
The IDF further stated that “an effort was made to evacuate patients and asylum seekers from the hospital before the operation, and a special corridor was also opened.” The management of al-Shifa Hospital was alerted before the IDF entered the compound, the Army said. The IDF assured that, following the operation, incubators, medical equipment and baby food would be transferred to the hospital.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza told Al Jazeera that it had been informed of the IDF raid on the coastal enclave’s largest hospital.
Let us tell you that Al-Shifa Hospital is now one of the centres of the 2023 Israel-Hamas war, which started with the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, which killed more than 1,200 people in southern Israel. Most of them were civilians.
Israel has retaliated with airstrikes and missile attacks on the Gaza Strip, claiming the lives of more than 11,000 people, which includes primarily women and children.
Hamas warned on Tuesday that an attack on the hospital would lead to a massacre of innocent Palestinian civilians. However, Israel has accused Hamas of using these civilians as human shields.
Israeli military officials said that they had entered the medical centre and were doing their best to ensure that no civilians, patients or hospital staff were harmed. The Israeli Army has said that Hamas has used many civilians as shields, but its effort is to ensure that no civilian is injured.
“We call on all Hamas terrorists present in the hospital to surrender,” the IDF said. According to reports, as IDF soldiers entered the hospital compound, loud explosions were heard.
At the same time, the terrorist group Hamas has accused America of giving the green signal for the attack. It has blamed US President Joe Biden for the deaths during this IDF operation.
Hamas claimed, “We hold the occupation (Israel) and President Biden fully responsible for the attack on the Al-Shifa medical complex.” Hamas said that “the White House and the Pentagon’s adoption of the occupation’s false claim that the resistance is using the al-Shifa medical complex for military purposes have given the green light to further genocide against civilians.”
