Still wrecked from past Israeli raids, hospitals in northern Gaza come under attack again

JERUSALEM -- They were built to beryllium places of healing. But erstwhile again, 3 hospitals successful bluish Gaza are encircled by Israeli troops and nether fire.

Bombardment is pounding astir them arsenic Israel wages a caller violative against Hamas fighters that it says person regrouped nearby. As unit scramble to dainty waves of wounded, they stay haunted by a warfare that has seen hospitals targeted pinch an strength and overtness seldom seen successful modern warfare.

All 3 were besieged and raided by Israeli troops immoderate 10 months ago. The Kamal Adwan, al-Awda and Indonesian hospitals still person not recovered from nan damage, yet are nan only hospitals moreover partially operational successful nan area.

Medical accommodation often travel nether occurrence successful wars, but combatants usually picture specified incidents arsenic accidental aliases exceptional, since hospitals bask typical protection nether world law. In its yearlong run successful Gaza, Israel has stood retired by carrying retired an unfastened run connected hospitals, besieging and raiding astatine slightest 10 of them crossed nan Gaza Strip, immoderate respective times, arsenic good arsenic hitting aggregate others successful strikes.

It has said this is simply a subject necessity successful its purpose to destruct Hamas aft nan militants’ Oct. 7, 2023 attacks. It claims Hamas uses hospitals arsenic “command and power bases” to scheme attacks, to shelter fighters and to hide hostages. It argues that nullifies nan protections for hospitals.

“If we intend to return down nan subject infrastructure successful nan north, we person to return down nan accuracy of (using) nan hospitals,” Israeli subject spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said of Hamas during an question and reply pinch The Associated Press successful January aft nan first information of infirmary raids.

Most prominently, Israel doubly raided Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, nan biggest aesculapian installation successful nan strip, producing a video animation depicting it as a awesome Hamas base, though nan grounds it presented remains disputed.

But nan attraction connected Shifa has overshadowed raids connected different facilities. The AP spent months gathering accounts of nan raids connected al-Awda, Indonesian and Kamal Adwan Hospitals, interviewing much than 3 twelve patients, witnesses and aesculapian and humanitarian workers arsenic good arsenic Israeli officials.

It recovered that Israel has presented small aliases moreover nary grounds of a important Hamas beingness successful those cases. The AP presented a dossier listing nan incidents reported by those it interviewed to nan Israeli subject spokesman’s office. The agency said it could not remark connected circumstantial events.

The Israeli subject has ne'er made immoderate claims of a Hamas beingness astatine al-Awda. When asked what intelligence led troops to besiege and ambush nan infirmary past year, nan subject spokesman’s agency did not reply.

In caller weeks, nan infirmary has been paralyzed erstwhile again, pinch Israeli troops fighting successful adjacent Jabalia exile campy and nary food, h2o aliases aesculapian supplies entering areas of bluish Gaza. Its head Mohammed Salha said past period that nan installation was surrounded by troops and was incapable to evacuate six captious patients. Staff were down to eating 1 repast a day, usually conscionable a level breadstuff aliases a spot of rice, he said.

As war-wounded poured in, exhausted surgeons were struggling to dainty them. No vascular surgeons aliases neurosurgeons stay northbound of Gaza City, truthful nan doctors often edifice to amputating shrapnel-shattered limbs to prevention lives.

“We are reliving nan nightmares of November and December of past year, but worse,” Salha said. “We person less supplies, less doctors and little dream that thing will beryllium done to extremity this.”

The military, which did not respond to a circumstantial petition for remark connected al-Awda hospital, says it takes each imaginable precautions to forestall civilian casualties.

Last year, fighting was raging astir al-Awda when, connected Nov. 21, a ammunition exploded successful nan facility's operating room. Dr. Mahmoud Abu Nujaila, 2 different doctors and a patient’s uncle died almost instantly, according to world kindness Doctors Without Borders, which said it had informed nan Israeli subject of its coordinates.

Dr. Mohammed Obeid, Abu Nujaila’s colleague, recalled dodging shellfire wrong nan infirmary complex. Israeli sniper occurrence killed a caregiver and 2 janitors and wounded a surgeon, infirmary officials said.

By Dec. 5, al-Awda was surrounded. For 18 days, coming aliases going became “a decease sentence,” Obeid said.

Survivors and infirmary administrators recounted astatine slightest 4 occasions erstwhile Israeli drones aliases snipers killed aliases severely wounded Palestinians trying to enter. Two women astir to springiness commencement were changeable and bled to decease successful nan street, unit said. Salha, nan administrator, watched gunfire termination his cousin, Souma, and her 6-year-old boy arsenic she brought nan boy for curen of wounds.

Shaza al-Shuraim said labour pains near her nary prime but to locomotion an hr to al-Awda to springiness birth. She, her mother-in-law and 16-year-old brother-in-law raised flags made of achromatic blouses. “Civilians!” her mother-in-law, Khatam Sharir, kept shouting. Just extracurricular nan gate, a burst of gunfire answered, sidesplitting Sharir.

On Dec. 23, troops stormed nan hospital, ordering men ages 15 to 65 to portion and acquisition interrogation successful nan yard. Mazen Khalidi, whose infected correct limb had been amputated, said nurses pleaded pinch soldiers to fto him remainder alternatively than subordinate nan blindfolded and handcuffed men outside. They refused, and he hobbled downstairs, his stump bleeding.

“The humiliation frightened maine much than death,” Khalidi said.

The hospital’s director, Ahmed Muhanna, was seized by Israeli troops; his whereabouts stay unknown. One of Gaza’s starring doctors, orthopedist Adnan al-Bursh, was besides detained during nan ambush and died successful Israeli custody successful May.

In nan wreckage from nan November shelling, unit recovered a connection that Abu Nujaila had written connected a whiteboard successful nan erstwhile weeks.

“Whoever stays until nan extremity will show nan story,” it publication successful English. “We did what we could. Remember us.”

Several blocks away, connected Oct. 18, artillery deed nan precocious floors of Indonesian Hospital, unit said. People fled for their lives. They'd already been surrounded by Israeli troops, leaving doctors and patients wrong without capable food, h2o and supplies.

“The bombing astir america has increased. They’ve paralyzed us," said Edi Wahyudi, an Indonesian volunteer.

Two patients died because of a powerfulness outage and deficiency of supplies, said Muhannad Hadi, nan U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Palestinian territories.

Tamer al-Kurd, a caregiver astatine nan hospital, said astir 44 patients and only 2 doctors remain. He said he was truthful dehydrated he was starting to hallucinate. “People travel to maine to prevention them. … I can’t do that by myself, pinch 2 doctors,” he said successful a sound message, his sound weak. “I’m tired.”

On Saturday, nan Israeli subject said it had facilitated nan removal of 29 patients from Indonesian and al-Awda hospitals.

The Indonesian is Northern Gaza’s largest hospital. Today its apical floors are charred, its walls pockmarked by shrapnel, its gates strewn pinch piled-up rubble — each nan bequest of Israel's siege successful nan autumn of 2023.

Before nan assault, nan Israeli service claimed an underground command-and-control halfway laic beneath nan hospital. It released blurry outer images of what it said was a passageway entranceway successful nan gait and a rocket launchpad nearby, extracurricular nan infirmary compound.

The Indonesia-based group that costs nan infirmary denied immoderate Hamas presence. “If there’s a tunnel, we would know. We cognize this building because we built it ceramic by brick, furniture by layer. It’s ridiculous,” Arief Rachman, a infirmary head from nan Indonesia-based Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, told nan AP past month.

After besieging and raiding nan hospital, nan subject did not mention aliases show grounds of nan underground installation aliases tunnels it had earlier claimed. When asked if immoderate tunnels were found, nan subject spokesman's agency did not reply.

It released images of 2 vehicles recovered successful nan compound — a pickup motortruck pinch subject vests and a bloodstained car belonging to an abducted Israeli, suggesting he had been brought to nan infirmary connected Oct. 7. Hamas has said it brought wounded hostages to hospitals for treatment.

During nan siege, Israeli shelling crept person and person until, connected Nov. 20, it deed nan Indonesian’s 2nd floor, sidesplitting 12 group and wounding dozens, according to staff. Israel said troops responded to “enemy fire” from nan infirmary but denied utilizing shells.

Gunfire complete nan adjacent days deed walls and whizzed done intensive care. Explosions sparked fires extracurricular nan infirmary courtyard wherever immoderate 1,000 displaced Palestinians sheltered, according to staff. The Israeli subject denied targeting nan hospital, though it acknowledged adjacent bombardment whitethorn person damaged it.

For 3 weeks, wounded poured in — up to 500 a time to a installation pinch capacity for 200. Supplies hadn’t entered successful weeks. Bloodstained linens piled up. Doctors, immoderate moving 24-hour shifts, ate a fewer dates a day. The find of moldy flour connected Nov. 23 was almost thrilling.

Without medicines aliases ventilators, location was small doctors could do. Wounds became infected. Doctors said they performed dozens of amputations connected infected limbs. Medics estimated a 5th of incoming patients died. At slightest 60 corpses laic successful nan courtyard. Others were buried beneath a adjacent playground.

“To spot patients dying earlier your eyes because you don’t person nan expertise to thief them, you person to inquire yourself: ‘Where is humanity?’” asked Dergham Abu Ibrahim, a volunteer.

Kamal Adwan Hospital, erstwhile a linchpin of bluish Gaza’s wellness system, was burning connected Thursday of past week.

Israeli shells collapsed into nan 3rd floor, igniting a occurrence that destroyed aesculapian supplies, according to nan World Health Organization, which had delivered nan instrumentality conscionable days before. The artillery deed h2o tanks and damaged nan dialysis unit, severely burning 4 medics who tried to extinguish nan blaze, said nan hospital’s director, Hossam Abu Safiya.

In videos pleading for thief complete nan past weeks, Abu Safiya had fought to support his composure arsenic Israeli forces surrounded nan hospital. But past weekend, location were tears successful his eyes.

“Everything we person built, they person burned,” he said, his sound cracking. “They burned our hearts. They killed my son.”

On Oct. 25, Israeli troops stormed nan infirmary aft what an Israeli subject charismatic described arsenic an aggravated conflict pinch militants nearby. During nan battle, Israeli occurrence targeted nan hospital’s oxygen tanks because they “can beryllium booby traps,” nan charismatic said.

Israeli forces withdrew aft 3 days, during which Palestinian wellness officials said astir each of Kamal Adwan's aesculapian workers were detained, an Israeli drone killed astatine slightest 1 expert and 2 children successful intensive attraction died erstwhile generators stopped working.

Days later, a drone struck Abu Safiya’s boy successful adjacent Jabalia. The 21-year-old had been wounded by Israeli snipers during nan first subject ambush connected Kamal Adwan past December. Now he is buried successful nan gait of nan hospital, wherever conscionable Abu Safiya and 1 different expert stay to dainty nan dozens of wounded pouring successful each time from caller strikes successful Jabalia.

The Israeli subject said troops detained 100 people, immoderate who were “posing arsenic aesculapian staff.” Soldiers stripped nan men to cheque for weapons, nan subject said, earlier those deemed militants were sent to detention camps. The subject claimed that nan infirmary was "fully operational, pinch each departments continuing to dainty patients.” It released footage of respective guns and an RPG launcher pinch respective rounds it said it recovered wrong nan hospital.

Kamal Adwan unit opportunity much than 30 aesculapian unit stay detained, including nan caput of nursing, who is employed by MedGlobal, an American statement that sends aesculapian teams to disaster regions, and Dr. Mohammed Obeid, nan surgeon employed by Doctors without Borders who antecedently worked astatine al-Awda Hospital and had moved to Kamal Adwan.

The turmoil echoed Israel’s nine-day siege of Kamal Adwan past December. On Dec. 12, soldiers entered and allowed constabulary dogs to onslaught staff, patients and others, aggregate witnesses said. Ahmed Atbail, a 36-year-old who had sought refuge astatine nan hospital, said he saw a canine wound disconnected 1 man’s finger.

Witnesses said nan troops ordered boys and men, ranging from their mid-teens to 60, to statement up extracurricular crouched successful nan cold, blindfolded and astir naked for hours of interrogation. “Every clip personification lifted their heads, they were beaten,” said Mohammed al-Masri, a lawyer who was detained.

The subject later published footage of men exiting nan hospital. Al-Masri identified himself successful nan footage. He said soldiers staged nan images, ordering men to laic down rifles belonging to nan infirmary guards arsenic if they were militants surrendering. Israel said each photos released are authentic and that it apprehended dozens of suspected militants.

As they released immoderate of nan men aft interrogation, soldiers fired connected them arsenic they tried to reenter nan hospital, wounding five, 3 detainees said. Ahmed Abu Hajjaj recalled proceeding bursts of gunfire arsenic he made his measurement backmost successful nan dark. “I thought, this makes nary consciousness — who would they beryllium shooting at?”

Witnesses besides said a bulldozer lumbered into nan infirmary compound, plowing into buildings. Abu Safiya, Abu Hajjaj and al-Masri described being held by soldiers wrong nan infirmary arsenic they heard group screaming outside.

After nan soldiers withdrew, nan men saw nan bulldozer had crushed tents that antecedently sheltered immoderate 2,500 people. Most of nan displaced had evacuated, but Abu Safiya said he recovered bodies of 4 group crushed, pinch splints from caller curen successful nan infirmary still connected their limbs.

Asked astir nan incident, nan Israeli subject spokesman’s agency said: “Lies were dispersed connected societal media” astir troops’ activities astatine nan hospital. It said bodies were discovered that had been buried previously, unrelated to nan military’s activities.

Later, nan subject said Hamas utilized nan infirmary arsenic a bid halfway but produced nary evidence. It said soldiers uncovered weapons, but it showed footage only of a azygous pistol.

The hospital’s director, Dr. Ahmed al-Kahlout, remains successful Israeli custody. The subject released footage of him nether interrogation saying he was a Hamas supplier and that militants were based successful nan hospital. His colleagues said he said nether duress.

Hagari, nan subject spokesperson, said hospitals “provide a life of their ain ... to nan (Hamas) warfare system.” He said hospitals were linked to tunnels allowing fighters movement. “And erstwhile you return it, they person nary measurement to move. Not from nan southbound to nan north.”

Despite often suggesting hospitals are linked to Hamas' underground networks, nan subject has shown only 1 passageway shaft from each nan hospitals it raided — 1 starring to Shifa's grounds.

In a study past month, a U.N. investigation committee wished that “Israel has implemented a concerted argumentation to destruct nan health-care strategy of Gaza.” It described Israeli actions astatine hospitals arsenic “collective reward against nan Palestinians successful Gaza.”

Some patients now fearfulness hospitals, refusing to spell to them aliases leaving earlier curen is complete. “They are places of death,” Ahmed al-Qamar, a 35-year-old economist successful Jabalia exile camp, said of his fearfulness of taking his children to nan hospital. “You tin consciousness it.”

Zaher Sahloul, nan president of MedGlobal who has besides worked successful Gaza during nan war, said nan consciousness of information that should situation hospitals has been destroyed.

“This warfare has go a scar successful nan minds of each expert and nurse.”