Troops have been combing through the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City since Monday
Israel says 170 Gaza gunmen killed in hospital raid
Over 170 gunmen have been killed during a prolonged operation at the main hospital in Gaza, Israeli forces revealed on Saturday.
However, according to Hamas representatives, the deceased individuals identified in Israeli reports were not combatants but rather patients and displaced individuals. Hamas denounced Israel for alleged war crimes.
At the break of dawn on Monday, Israeli troops ventured into al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City and commenced a thorough search of the extensive facility, which the military claims is linked to a tunnel network serving as a base for Hamas and other Palestinian combatants.
“Thus far, the forces have neutralised in excess of 170 terrorists within the hospital vicinity, interrogated more than 800 suspects, and uncovered numerous weapons and infrastructure associated with terror activities,” stated the Israeli military.
The military disclosed on Thursday that over 350 militants from Hamas and Islamic Jihad have been apprehended at the hospital, marking the largest number captured simultaneously since the onset of the war last October.
Contrary to the military’s assertions, Hamas and medical personnel refute claims that the hospital is used for military purposes or to harbour fighters. Hamas representatives have recently contended that the deceased individuals previously identified in Israeli reports were not combatants but rather civilian patients.
Both the claims from Hamas and Israeli forces could not be independently verified.Cameron urged to publish Foreign Office legal advice on Israel’s war in Gaza
The shadow UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, has urged David Cameron to publish the Foreign Office formal legal advice on whether Israel is breaching international humanitarian law in Gaza.
Lammy’s move comes as two human rights groups have been given permission for an oral hearing to seek a judicial review of the government’s refusal to ban arms exports to Israel.
“Given the gravity of the situation in Gaza, the degree of public and parliamentary interest and the risks to the credibility of the UK’s export controls regime, there is a compelling case to publish the government’s legal advice,” Lammy wrote in a letter to Lord Cameron, the foreign secretary.
Arms export licences should not be granted if “there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law”, the letter said.
