The Israeli military’s ongoing focus on hospitals in Gaza has intensified as the campaign to eliminate Hamas from the enclave enters its sixth week. A recent visit by a CNN team embedded with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to a children’s hospital in Gaza exposed charges laid by the IDF that parts of the hospital had been utilized as a Hamas “command and control center.” The IDF additionally alleged that the hospital had been used to hold hostages.
The CNN team witnessed weapons and explosives in the hospital’s basement, which the IDF spokesperson termed as an “armory.” The IDF also pointed to a chair with a rope next to it, a piece of women’s clothing, and a makeshift toilet, claiming that these findings would be tested for DNA.
However, Mohammed Zarqout, who is responsible for Gaza’s hospitals, disputed the IDF’s claims. Zarqout stated that the basement at Al Rantisi had served as a shelter for women and children as well as the location of the pharmacy and some of the hospital’s administrative offices before it became impossible to use due to rainwater infiltration. Zarqout also revealed that medical staff had been forced to leave the hospital by Israeli soldiers and were unable to evacuate all the patients.
The actions of the Israeli military have sparked criticism from global health organizations and aid groups. The World Health Organization has recorded at least 137 attacks on health facilities in Gaza, which resulted in 521 deaths and 686 injuries. Amid ongoing attacks on hospitals in Gaza, the UNFPA, UNICEF, and WHO have called for urgent international action to protect these critical facilities from military activity.
Doctors at Al-Shifa, the biggest hospital in Gaza, continue to refuse to evacuate because they fear that hundreds of patients will die if left behind. The ongoing attacks on hospitals have led to what medical personnel describe as siege-like conditions, compromising the ability to provide safe access for health staff, the injured, and other patients. The situation has become a humanitarian crisis as thousands of civilians seek refuge in hospitals amidst relentless Israeli bombardment.