On Tuesday, Israeli military officials released interrogation videos of captured terrorists describing how Gaza’s Shifa Hospital is regularly used as a command and logistics center in operations against IDF forces in the area. The recorded interviews contain statements of confirmation from members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
In a statement released with the footage, the IDF described the depositions as containing “details of Hamas terror infrastructure deeply embedded within the hospital, which is used by senior Hamas operatives for planning and directing terror attacks.”
One associate from Islamic Jihad told interviewers that he estimated that there were as many as 1,000 militants stationed in and around the medical campus, including certain sections that “belong” to his group. The individual described the maternity ward as his organization’s “headquarters.”
According to some of the prisoners in the recordings, the building’s medical residency department is serving as an improvised weapons storage room.
Some of the detainees claimed to have been stationed at the facility for as long as three months, suggesting that the terror groups reestablished their positions shortly after Israel withdrew from the facility on November 15.
International law requires that medical infrastructure be demilitarized during times of conflict, and any attempt to use them for belligerent activity will negate the statutory protections that they are given. This distinction is important in light of criticism that Jerusalem has received for currently attempting to regain control of what is Gaza’s largest health care facility.
The use of Shifa for prohibited purposes has been alleged by Israel since before these interviews were conducted.
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