Israel’s military forces early this morning stormed Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City with tanks and heavy gunfire, resulting in deaths and injuries. About 30,000 people, including displaced Palestinian civilians, wounded patients and medical staff are trapped inside the complex. The number of casualties and injuries is still unknown.
Witnesses in Gaza City told AFP they saw tanks surround the hospital site, and that Israeli forces detained at least 80 people during the raid - including Al Jazeera Arabic journalist Ismail al-Ghoul and his crew.
Several medical staff inside the hospital said that the electricity had been cut and that they had been instructed by Israeli forces not to move, prohibiting them from properly treating patients. Multiple patients on life support at the intensive care unit had reportedly died because the electricity supply was cut ahead of the raid. Today's raid comes after Israeli forces carried out a November operation in Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical complex in the Gaza Strip, sparking an international outcry.
