Israel says 90 gunman dead at Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital, 160 arrested

The Israeli military said it killed at least 90 gunmen and arrested about 160 people during a raid on Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. But the Hamas government in Gaza denied this, saying all the victims were injured hospital patients and displaced people.

Shifa Hospital, the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip before the war, is now one of the few even partially operational health facilities in the north of the territory and has also been housing displaced civilians.

“For the past day, troops neutralized terrorists and recovered weapons in the hospital area while preventing harm to civilians, patients, medical teams and medical equipment,” the military said in a statement.

It also released the names and photos of two Israeli soldiers killed in the operation.

The Israeli attack on the hospital began in the early hours of Monday morning. The military released video of weapons hidden inside the facility and said it had dispatched special forces backed by infantry and tanks based on intelligence that the hospital was again being exploited by gunmen.

Ismail Tawabta, director of the media office of the Hamas government in Gaza, said all the victims were injured patients in hospitals and displaced people.

“The Israeli occupying force relies on lies and deception to spread its narrative and justify its ongoing criminal and criminal acts, which violate international law and international humanitarian law,” he said.

Reuters was unable to verify either account.

Israel faced fierce criticism last November when Israeli forces first attacked Al Shifa hospital.

Troops discovered tunnels there that they said were used by Hamas as command and control centers.

Hamas and medical personnel deny that the hospital is used for military purposes or to harbor militants.

“What happened at Shifa hospital is a war crime and part of the genocidal war carried out by the Israeli occupying forces,” said Bassem Naim, a senior Hamas official who once served as health minister.