The raid on Nasser Hospital in the city of Hanyounis, one of the largest medical facilities in the Gaza Strip and one of the few still operating there, came after days of fighting between the Israeli army and Hamas fighters outside the hospital.
Israel, which has accused Hamas militants of using the hospital for military purposes, said it was conducting a “precise and limited operation” at the hospital and that there was “no obligation” for patients or staff to evacuate.
Israeli press secretary Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said there was “credible intelligence from several sources, including the released hostages, indicating that Hamas was holding hostages at the Nasser Hospital in Hanyounis and that the bodies of our hostages may be there.”
The Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip reported that thousands of people, including patients, who had taken refuge in the hospital complex had been forced to leave it in recent days.
The ministry called the situation at the hospital “catastrophic” because the staff cannot move the bodies to the morgue due to the existing risks.
The international charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported a “chaotic situation” at the hospital after it came under fire on Thursday morning, killing or wounding several people.
“Our medical staff had to flee the hospital, abandoning the patients,” MSF reported. One MSF worker is missing and another has been detained by Israeli soldiers.
It is believed that around 130 of the hostages taken by Hamas in the October 7 attack on Israel and taken to the Gaza Strip are still in the Gaza Strip. Israel believes 30 of those hostages are already dead.
2024-02-16 08:10:43
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