Israeli forces have ordered Palestinians taking refuge in one of Gaza's last functioning hospitals to evacuate from the complex, raising fears that forces will try to storm a facility crowded with thousands of people, some of whom were shot as they tried to escape. According to the doctors there.
The Israeli military accused Hamas on Wednesday of conducting military activity inside the hospital campus, Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis, and claimed that the complex “was used to hold hostages.”
Israel's claims could not be independently verified, but they indicate its increasing focus on the hospital as Israeli forces attempt to eradicate Hamas fighters from the southern city. Previous Israeli warnings to evacuate hospitals, including Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest in Gaza, often preceded military raids on the facilities.
The Israeli army added: “We demand the immediate cessation of all military activities in the hospital area and the immediate departure of military personnel from it.” He said In the current situation. She called on civilians taking shelter in the hospital to leave to “safer places” in southern and central Gaza. The statement did not call on patients or medical personnel to leave the hospital.
Gaza residents said that Israeli forces regularly opened fire on areas from which they asked their residents to flee, leaving no safe place in the Strip. Adding to the terror of those inside the hospital, Israeli forces opened fire on people who tried to leave the complex, killing or wounding some of them, according to two doctors interviewed on Tuesday.
“The situation is very dangerous,” said Khaled Al-Sir, a general surgeon at the hospital. He said that the Israeli army indicated only one day ago that the hospital, which has been surrounded by Israeli ground forces for weeks, is safe.
The city of Khan Yunis was the center of the Israeli invasion of southern Gaza, where airstrikes killed hundreds of civilians and soldiers who opened fire on people in the streets, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health and Palestinian media reports. Many Gazans who fled the Israeli military offensive in northern and central Gaza took refuge in Khan Yunis, but were forced to flee again as Israeli forces advanced deep into the Strip.
The Israeli army did not immediately respond to questions about the allegation that its forces opened fire on those who tried to flee.
Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres, said on Tuesday that “the intense fighting in Khan Yunis, especially near Al-Nasser and Al-Amal hospitals,” continues to endanger the safety of medical staff.
The Israeli military says Hamas uses hospitals as a cover for its operations, an allegation denied by the movement and medical officials. Palestinians took refuge in hospitals despite the fact that Israeli forces regularly launched raids on them and their surroundings, and in some cases raided hospital complexes.
Nahed Abu Taima, head of the surgery department at Nasser Hospital, said that explosions caused by airstrikes have become closer to the hospital and have become more intense over the past few days. He added: “But we will not leave the hospital without our patients.”
Dr. Al-Sir said that many doctors and nurses, along with their family members who were taking shelter at the hospital, began packing their belongings and preparing to flee, although leaving presented its own set of risks.
He added that there are about 8,000 people inside Al-Nasser, including seriously injured patients suffering from limb injuries, and it will be difficult to transport them.
The situation inside the hospital became increasingly bad. Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra, spokesman for the Gaza Ministry of Health, said nearby Israeli raids caused fires to spread to the hospital's medical equipment store and supply warehouse, burning them almost completely. He added that sewage flowed into the emergency department, hindering the treatment of patients and threatening further spread of the disease.
Aaron Puckerman, Rawan Sheikh Ahmed And Farnaz Fasihi Contributed to reports.
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