Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi visited the Al-Shifa medical complex in Gaza, where he confirmed that his soldiers entered the hospital to arrest "many activists, focusing on the leaders." He added, "We are here to kill those who fight, and we prefer prisoners, as they are important assets - and we work here to influence the negotiations."
He continued, "This is the best example of a surprise raid and deception; the forces arrived unexpectedly at the place that Hamas had returned to and turned into a command and control center, from which it launched an attempt to regain power in northern Gaza. The forces arrived unexpectedly, while they entered within a few minutes into the hospital complex."
Halevi conducted a security assessment from inside the Al-Shifa medical complex as part of a field tour where he inspected the Golani Brigade forces in northern Gaza, accompanied by Southern Command leader Yaron Finkelman, and the commander of the 162nd Division Itzik Cohen, along with the commander of the "Shayetet 13" elite naval commandos unit, Colonel ("A").
The Chief of Staff stated, "It's very important to put pressure on Hamas, which is also crucial for negotiations. We are fulfilling two objectives here: inflicting significant damage to Hamas and dismantling it, eliminating the military leadership, and harming the civilian leadership and activists." He added, "We also aim to prevent such a place from exercising control and to kill those who fight, but we prefer to capture them as it allows us to interrogate them, and in addition, it helps us intensify the pressure in the context of the negotiations."
He confirmed that "the forces, despite the presence of medical teams, patients, and displaced individuals, entered and fought in the hospital complex and exchanged fire there with about 20 terrorists, killing them upon entry. This is a level of combat performance and a very precise mission in the initial phase."
