Only one doctor remains at Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital following a days-long Israeli raid, a spokesman for the Hamas-run health ministry has said.
In a video statement, Dr Khalil Daqran urged international organisations to send medical staff to the hospital in the north of the strip, saying patients there were bleeding to death for lack of proper care.
On Monday, Israel said its forces had detained about 100 “terrorists” at the hospital before withdrawing.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the hospital, inside Jabalia refugee camp, had been used by Hamas – claims denied by local health officials.
Mr Daqran said: “Two days ago, the army stormed Kamal Adwan Hospital, causing widespread destruction: setting large parts on fire, destroying the hospital’s entrances, and demolishing surrounding walls.
“Patients and medical staff were assaulted, with many patients and companions arrested, along with most of the medical staff.
“The fate of 30 medical personnel remains unknown.
“The army has removed the hospital from service entirely, destroying all its contents. There are now no medicines, medical supplies or food within the hospital.”
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed it had completed a “precise operation against a Hamas terrorist stronghold” in the hospital.
The IDF said it had taken steps to minimise civilian casualties and facilitated the evacuation of the hospital. It added that troops found weapons, cash and documents belonging to Hamas during the raid.
Some Hamas militants, including some linked to last year’s 7 October attacks, disguised themselves as medical staff, the IDF said.
The Israeli raid injured medics and killed patients at the hospital, health officials said.
The Israeli army published a video purporting to show the interrogation of an ambulance driver who had worked at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
In the video, the authenticity of which could not be verified by the BBC, the alleged driver’s face is blurred. The man says Hamas militants operated in the hospital.
He says Hamas used ambulances to transport militants to their missions and adds: “We have had enough. [Hamas] are stationed in the hospitals, stationed in the schools.”
The northern Gaza Strip is facing a deepening humanitarian crisis, with hundreds of thousands of civilians living in increasingly desperate conditions.
Mr Daqran said: “Conditions in northern Gaza are catastrophic: there is no water, food or baby formula. Infrastructure has been decimated, sewage and waste are piling up among the residents, leading to the spread of disease and epidemics.”
UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Friday that “the Israeli military is subjecting an entire population to bombing, siege and risk of starvation”.
“The Israeli government’s policies and practices in northern Gaza risk emptying the area of all Palestinians. We are facing what could amount to atrocity crimes, including potentially extending to crimes against humanity,” Mr Türk added.
He also said it was unacceptable that Palestinian armed groups were reportedly operating among civilians, including inside shelters for the displaced, and putting them in harm’s way.
Many Palestinians believe the Israeli military is implementing out the so-called “Generals’ Plan” in the north, which would see the forced displacement of all of the estimated 400,000 civilians there to the south followed by a siege of any remaining Hamas fighters.
The Israeli military has denied having such a plan and says it is making sure that civilians get out of harm’s way.
Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to the group’s unprecedented attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
More than 42,000 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s health ministry.