The Israeli army stated in a statement today, Wednesday, that it is carrying out a "precise and targeted" operation against Hamas in a specific area of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza. It added in a statement via its Telegram account, "Our operation at Al-Shifa Hospital comes based on intelligence information and field necessity." It stated, "We call on all Hamas militants present in Al-Shifa Hospital to surrender."
Al-Shifa Hospital, which was stormed by Israel today, is the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip. Both Israel and the United States have claimed that Hamas fighters are using Gaza hospitals to hide command centers and hostages through tunnels. Hamas, which has controlled the coastal enclave since 2007, has dug tunnels stretching under Gaza for hundreds of kilometers, with some parts reaching depths of up to 80 meters. Hamas, health authorities, and hospital directors deny that the Palestinian movement is hiding military infrastructure within or beneath the hospital and welcomed any international inspection.
**What is Al-Shifa Hospital?**
It is a large complex of buildings and yards located a few hundred meters from a small fishing port in the city of Gaza, situated between the Beach refugee camp and the al-Rimal neighborhood.
**How many children are in Al-Shifa?**
As of yesterday, Tuesday, the hospital was caring for 36 infants, according to the medical staff there, who stated that there is no clear mechanism for their transfer despite Israel's offer to provide incubators for the evacuation process. Three out of 39 premature infants have died since the fuel needed to operate the generators used for the incubators ran out this week.
**History of Al-Shifa Hospital**
The hospital was established in 1946 during British rule, two years before Britain's withdrawal from Palestine. It remained operational during the nearly two-decade Egyptian administration of the Gaza Strip after the 1948 war. In 1967, Israel seized and occupied the Gaza Strip, and Al-Shifa Hospital remained a central location for a long time, especially before Hamas took control of the enclave, as many Palestinians sought refuge there during confrontations with Israeli forces. The Times of London reported in 1971 on a firefight between a Palestinian gunman hiding under a bed in the nurses’ room and an Israeli army patrol searching the hospital.
During the first Intifada against Israeli occupation in 1987, The New York Times reported on confrontations in which several hundred Palestinians threw stones at Israeli soldiers outside the hospital, chanting, "Come kill us or leave!"
**Redesign and Expansion of the Hospital**
Israeli news reports have stated that Israeli architects oversaw the renovation and redesign of the hospital in the 1980s. Tzvi Chayani, founder of the Israeli Architectural Archive, wrote on Yedioth Ahronoth's website last Thursday, "With the help of American support, Israel embarked on a project to renovate the hospital complex and expand it. This project also included the installation of a concrete floor underground. Unfortunately, Hamas has taken control of this underground area in recent years," without providing evidence for his claim.
**Transfer of Control to Hamas**
In 1994, security forces controlled by Fatah raised the Palestinian flag above the hospital when limited self-governance was granted to Palestinians in Gaza during the Oslo peace process. Effective control of the hospital then shifted from the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority to Hamas after the movement's surprise victory in the 2006 elections and its military takeover of Gaza in 2007. During the power struggle between Fatah and Hamas, which escalated until Hamas's control of the enclave, Al-Shifa Hospital and others were used to treat militants from both sides under a ceasefire agreement not to harm each other's wounded. Israel stated earlier that Hamas militants were hiding in areas beneath Al-Shifa Hospital, a claim it made during the 2008-2009 war, in which over 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis were killed.
