(GoRealNewsNow.com) – In defense of its argument that it needs to continue fighting so that Hamas can be eradicated from the face of the planet, Israel says it has proof that up to 1,000 terrorists are holed up in a hospital in Gaza.
Specifically, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared a video on Tuesday that shows two Palestinian men, caught by the IDF, saying that between 600 and 1,000 Hamas members have been hiding in Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
The two men, named Nabeel Rajab Abed Shteivi and Bakr Ahmed Bakr Qanita, were caught by the IDF during an operation at Shifa Hospital. This operation was part of an effort to deal with Hamas members coming back to the hospital area. Israeli forces had taken control of this area before, in the middle of November.
Shteivi, who helped make missiles, said, “Shifa, or schools and places like that, are our shelters.” He mentioned that Hamas controls the entire hospital and is very active in the departments that specialize in certain types of care.
He also said, “You might see someone who doesn’t look like a nurse but is dressed in a nurse’s uniform,” indicating that Hamas members might disguise themselves as hospital staff.
Qanita, a high-ranking Hamas leader, told IDF interrogators that he commanded 143 others and stayed in Shifa Hospital for almost a month before being caught. He confirmed that between 600 and 1,000 Hamas members used the hospital as a hiding spot at different times, using it as one of their main locations, especially the departments that specialize in certain treatments and the hospital’s management offices.
The Israeli military has been focusing on hospitals in Gaza, like Shifa, to find Hamas members. The operation at Shifa has been going on for more than a week and is expected to continue for a bit longer.
The IDF reported that during this operation, they have killed 170 terrorists in fights in and around the hospital area. They have also arrested another 500 people and found a lot of weapons hidden among hospital stuff, patients, and people who have been displaced.
IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari mentioned in a news conference that “Hamas hijacked the Shifa Hospital and hides behind the sick and injured, waging war from inside the hospital.”
Hagari said this operation is one of the most successful ones against Hamas or Islamic Jihad members since the conflict started. He also said that Hamas is causing harm to the hospital by using it to attack Israeli forces, including shooting and throwing explosive devices from different parts of the hospital.
He concluded, “Our operation at Shifa Hospital proves once again: Hamas systematically uses hospitals to wage war and consistently uses the people of Gaza as human shields.”
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