Israeli troops entered Gaza’s biggest hospital on Wednesday and searched its rooms and basement, witnesses said, in pursuit of Hamas terrorists.
Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City has become a primary target of the ground operation by Israeli forces, who say Hamas terrorists located an operations headquarters in tunnels beneath it, which Hamas denies.
Israel said its troops uncovered weapons and “terror infrastructure” inside the hospital compound after killing terrorists in a clash outside. Once inside, they said there had been no fighting and no friction with civilians, patients, or staff.
Witnesses who spoke to Reuters from inside the compound on Wednesday described a situation that appeared calm, if tense, as Israeli troops moved between buildings carrying out searches. Sporadic shooting was heard but there were no immediate reports of anyone hurt inside the grounds.
The Israeli military released photos of a soldier standing beside cardboard boxes marked “medical supplies” and “baby food,” at a location Reuters verified was inside the facility. Other photos showed Israeli troops in tactical formation walking past makeshift tents and mattresses.
“Before entering the hospital our forces were confronted by explosive devices and terrorist squads, fighting ensued in which terrorists were killed,” the Israeli military said.
“We can confirm that incubators, baby food, and medical supplies brought by IDF tanks from Israel have successfully reached the Shifa hospital. Our medical teams and Arabic-speaking soldiers are on the ground to ensure that these supplies reach those in need,” it said.
A senior military official said: “IDF soldiers have already found weapons and other terror infrastructure. In the last hour, we saw concrete evidence that Hamas terrorists used the Shifa hospital as a terror headquarter.”
Hamas called the claim that weapons were found “a continuation of the lies and cheap propaganda through which [Israel] is trying to give justification for its crime aimed at destroying the health sector in Gaza.”
Dr. Ahmed El Mohallalati, a surgeon, told Reuters by phone on Wednesday morning that staff had hid as the fighting unfolded around the hospital overnight.
“One of the big tanks entered within the hospital from the eastern main gate, and they were, they were they just parked in the front of the hospital emergency department,” he said.
The Israelis had told the hospital administration in advance that they planned to enter, he said.
“They have been moving between the buildings where the troops can be seen, within the hospital areas. So, it’s getting more and more close to our building. We don’t know what they want exactly,” he said. “The tanks are continuously moving within the hospital area.”
After five days during which he said the hospital had come under repeated Israeli attack, it was a relief at least to have reached an “end point,” with troops now inside the grounds instead of outside shooting in, he said.
Another witness inside the hospital, reached by telephone, said tanks had entered the compound at 3:00 a.m. The Israeli troops dismounted and spread out in the yard, and began searching the basement and entering buildings.
Israel has consistently maintained that the hospital sits above a Hamas headquarters, an assertion that Washington said on Tuesday was supported by its own intelligence.
The hospital and compound were for Hamas “a central hub of their operations, perhaps even the beating heart,” Israeli army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner said.
Israel launched its campaign to annihilate Hamas, the Islamist terrorist group that controls Gaza, after they crossed into Israel on Oct. 7, rampaging through towns, killing civilians, and dragging hostages back to the enclave. Israel says 1,200 people were killed and some 240 captives taken hostage in the deadliest day in its 75-year history.
Since then, Israel has put Gaza’s entire population of 2.3 million under siege, pounding the crowded strip with air strikes. Hamas-controlled Gaza health officials say more than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed, and more are buried under the rubble. Israel has ordered the entire northern half of Gaza evacuated, and around two-thirds of residents are now homeless.
Israel has so far rejected calls for a ceasefire, which it says would benefit Hamas, a position backed by Washington. However, a pause in fighting has been discussed in negotiations mediated by Qatar to release some of the hostages held by Hamas.
An official briefed on the negotiations said Qatari mediators were seeking a deal that would include a three-day truce, with Hamas releasing 50 of its captives and Israel to release some women and minors from among its security detainees. The official said Hamas had agreed to the outlines of the deal but Israel had not and was still negotiating terms.
