“Patients must be protected”, recalls the White House as the Israeli army entered Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza for a “targeted” operation

2023-11-15 07:36:12

Cover image: Smoke rises as Palestinians take shelter at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, November 8, 2023. STRINGER/REUTERS

The Israeli army announced early Wednesday that it was carrying out “a precise and targeted operation” against Hamas “in a specific area of ​​Al-Shifa Hospital” of Gaza. The place is also considered a strategic Hamas military site by Israel and the United States. “We call on all Hamas terrorists present in the hospital to surrender”urged the Israeli army in its message announcing the operation.“I am in the hospital and I see dozens of soldiers and commandos in the emergency room and reception and there are tanks that have entered the hospital complex”Youssef Abul Reesh, a senior official in the Hamas government’s health ministry, told Agence France-Presse (AFP). Asked about the ongoing operation, a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council told AFP that “hospitals and patients had to be protected”.Tuesday, before the launch of the Israeli operation, UN chief Antonio Guterres said “very concerned about the horrible situation and the significant loss of life in several hospitals in Gaza”calling for an immediate ceasefire “in the name of humanity”.The American President, Joe Biden, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, spoke on Tuesday evening, and “discussed at length the ongoing efforts to secure the release of the hostages held by Hamas”, the White House said in a statement. Earlier in the day, Joe Biden said he believed in an agreement on the release of hostages.Tens of thousands of people demonstrated on Tuesday in Washington, Israeli flag in their hands or tied around their necks, demanding in particular the release of the hostages held by Hamas. “Take them home!” »regularly chanted the crowd in the American capital.A total of 112 people – French people, their beneficiaries and agents of the French Institute – “were able to leave the Gaza Strip” and are “now safe in France”announced the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday. “This assessment marks the end of a first phase of our evacuation operations, which enabled almost all of our compatriots wishing to leave Gaza to do so”she added.Hamas government says 11,320 Palestinians killed in Israeli bombardment of Gaza Strip since the start of the war on October 7. Among the deaths recorded to date are 4,650 children, detailed the Hamas government. In addition, 29,200 people were injured.

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