Israeli authorities said arrests were made in Gaza’s largest functioning hospital on Saturday, according to health officials and the military, as airstrikes pummeled the territory and rain pelted Palestinians seeking refuge in Rafah.
Israeli forces invaded the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Thursday as they continued their campaign against Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist party that administers the region.
Occupation forces detained a large number of medical staff members inside Nasser Medical Complex, which they (Israel) turned into a military base,” said Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra, according to reports.
The Israeli military said it was looking for militants in Nasser and had already arrested 100 people on the facilities, killed gunmen near the hospital, and discovered weapons inside.
Hamas has refuted accusations that its soldiers utilise medical institutions for cover. At least two liberated Israeli hostages have stated that they were detained in Nasser.
The Israeli raid into the hospital has sparked concerns among patients, medical personnel, and displaced Palestinians sheltering there.
About 10,000 people were seeking shelter at the hospital earlier this week, but many left either in anticipation of the Israeli raid or because of Israeli orders to evacuate, the Gaza Health Ministry said.
Israeli plans to storm Rafah have prompted international concern that such action would sharply worsen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Also, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh blamed Israel for a lack of progress in achieving a ceasefire deal in Gaza, the group said in a statement on Saturday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed “complete victory” over Hamas but added on Wednesday that flexibility in the group’s position could move forward negotiations for a deal that would see hostages released.
Israel’s air and ground offensive has devastated much of Gaza and forced nearly all of its inhabitants from their homes.
Palestinian health authorities say 28,858 people, mostly civilians, have been killed.
The war began when Hamas sent fighters into Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and seizing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
At least 83 people were killed in airstrikes across the Gaza Strip since Friday, health officials said, including one person on Saturday in Rafah, an area that borders Egypt and which Israel says is Hamas’ last bastion.
