Gaza media office says more than 520 bodies have now been found in seven mass graves at al-Shifa, Nasser and Kamal Adwan hospitals
Archiv: Al-Shifa hospital (Gaza)
Blinken Denies US Human Rights ‘Double Standard’ for Israel
“Do we have a double standard? The answer is no,” Blinken said in response to questions about the Biden administration’s handling of allegations of abuses by Israeli forces in Gaza, compared with those attributed to Hamas.
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US Speaks Out About ‚Mass Grave‘ Found in Gaza
„I‘ve seen those reports and we are inquiring about it with the government of Israel,“ Miller said.
When asked in a follow-up question if the U.S. will „press the Israelis to find out more about this issue,“ Miller replied: „that‘s exactly what we are doing.“
Newsweek has also contacted the State Department for further comment.
U.N. Calls for Inquiry Into Mass Graves at 2 Gaza Hospitals
Mahmoud Basal, a spokesman for Palestinian Civil Defense, an emergency services organization, said some of the bodies found in Khan Younis were handcuffed, shot in the head or wearing detainee uniforms. He accused Israeli forces of killing and burying them. Israel’s military declined to address those claims on Tuesday, and they could not be independently verified.
On Tuesday, hours after the top U.N. human rights official called for an inquiry into the mass graves, the Israeli military said that its forces had exhumed bodies that were buried by Palestinians “in the area” of Nasser Hospital and examined them as part of an effort to locate hostages. It did not comment on the report of the mass grave at Al-Shifa.
Mass graves in Gaza show victims’ hands were tied, says UN rights office
The development follows the recovery of hundreds of bodies “buried deep in the ground and covered with waste” over the weekend at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, central Gaza, and at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City in the north. A total of 283 bodies were recovered at Nasser Hospital, of which 42 were identified.
“Among the deceased were allegedly older people, women and wounded, while others were found tied with their hands…tied and stripped of their clothes,” said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Citing the local health authorities in Gaza, Ms. Shamdasani added that more bodies had been found at Al-Shifa Hospital.
‚Obvious Evidence of Genocide‘: Mass Grave Discovered in Gaza‘s Nasser Hospital
Al Jazeera reporter Hani Mahmoud said the bodies found in the Nasser grave included children, young men, and older women. Rescues said that some of the bodies they found had been buried with their hands tied behind their backs, according to Middle East Eye.
„Our teams continue their search and retrieval operations for the remaining martyrs in the coming days as there are still a significant number of them,“ Palestinian emergency services said in a statement shared with Al Jazeera.
Palestinians describe bodies and ambulances crushed in Israel’s ongoing raid around Gaza hospital
Israeli jets on Sunday launched several strikes near the Shifa Hospital, which largely stopped functioning following the November raid. After claiming that Hamas maintained an elaborate command center there, Israeli forces months ago exposed a single tunnel leading to a few underground rooms.
Hardly any aid has been delivered in recent weeks to northern Gaza and Gaza City, where Shifa is located.
Israel-Palestine live: Israeli forces kill 50 Palestinians in al-Shifa hospital raid
Israeli forces killed 50 Palestinians and detained 180 people during a raid on Gaza‘s al-Shifa hospital on Monday, according to Israel‘s military.
The military said that those killed were fighters, and those arrested were suspected members of Hamas. It did not provide any evidence of those claims. Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of operating inside hospitals – a charge which the Palestinian group has consistently denied.
Hospitals should never be battlegrounds. We are terribly worried about the situation at Al-Shifa Hospital in northern #Gaza, which is endangering health workers, patients and civilians. The hospital has only recently restored minimal health services. Any hostilities or militarization of the facility jeopardize health services, access for ambulances, and delivery of life-saving supplies. Hospitals must be protected. Ceasefire!
Israeli forces launch new attack on Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital | Al Jazeera Newsfeed
The Israeli army has launched a new attack on al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza, raiding and opening fire on the facility where thousands are taking shelter.
Israeli forces shooting anyone moving inside al-Shifa hospital, eyewitness says
Mohammed Eliwa, a journalist reporting from al-Shifa hospital, told Al Jazeera Arabic that Israeli forces are shooting anyone moving in the courtyards.
Hamadah Abdel Hadi, an activist also inside the hospital, said Israeli forces broke into the hospital and immediately targeted Al Jazeera staff.
Israeli troops raid Gaza‘s Al Shifa Hospital
The Israeli military said soldiers had conducted a „precise operation“ based on intelligence that the hospital was being used by senior Hamas leaders, and were fired upon when they entered the compound.
This was a pernicious lie that was promoted by Biden and his administration to justify Israel’s attacking of hospitals. Those of us who warned that this was a lie at the time were accused of being Hamas propagandists.
The case of al-Shifa: Investigating the assault on Gaza’s largest hospital
The Post’s analysis shows:
– The rooms connected to the tunnel network discovered by IDF troops showed no immediate evidence of military use by Hamas.
– None of the five hospital buildings identified by Hagari appeared to be connected to the tunnel network.
– There is no evidence that the tunnels could be accessed from inside hospital wards.
Hours before IDF troops entered the complex, the Biden administration declassified U.S. intelligence assessments that it said bolstered Israel’s claims. In the aftermath of the raid, Israeli and U.S. officials have stood firm behind their initial statements.
A Washington Post investigation has found no proof of a Hamas command center under al-Shifa Hospital following Israel’s attack on the medical complex
Evidence Doesn‘t Support Israeli Claims That Hospital Was Hamas Command Center: Report
The Israeli raid on al-Shifa Hospital last month, which was preceded by an evacuation order aimed at thousands of people sheltering at the hospital and hundreds of sick patients, produced one of the grisliest scenes in the country’s ground invasion of the Gaza Strip: a “death zone” that included a mass grave at the entrance of the hospital and dozens of desperate patients inside, according to the World Health Organization, whose aid workers arrived at the facility on Nov. 18 as part of a humanitarian mission.
Forty patients, including four premature babies, died in the hospital due to a lack of electricity in the days surrounding the raid, hospital administrators told the United Nations.
Yesterday, my good friend and dear colleague, Dr. Hani Al-Haitham, head of Shifa emergency department, was brutally murdered by Israel, along with his beloved wife, Dr. Sameera Ghifari and their five children Shireen, Tia, Sameer, Wafa & Sara. In cold blood, coward Israeli soldiers killed seven more unarmed civilians.
(18.12.2023)
Another attack on all of us, on all humankind. You will never be forgotten, we pledge: we will rebuild Shifa, Gaza, Palestine!
Dr. Mads
Shifa 2019, Dr. Hani to the right
WHO delivers health supplies to Al-Shifa Hospital, appeals for continued access to address urgent needs in north Gaza
(17.12.2023)
Once the most important and largest referral hospital in Gaza, Al-Shifa now houses only a handful of doctors and a few nurses, together with 70 volunteers, working under what WHO staff described as “unbelievably challenging circumstances,” and calling it a “hospital in need of resuscitation.” The operating theatres and other major services remain nonfunctional due to lack of fuel, oxygen, specialized medical staff, and supplies. The hospital is only able to provide basic trauma stabilization, has no blood for transfusion, and hardly any staff to care for the constant flow of patients. Dialysis is being provided to approximately 30 patients a day, with the dialysis machines operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, using a small generator.
The team described the emergency department as a “bloodbath”, with hundreds of injured patients inside, and new patients arriving every minute. Patients with trauma injuries were being sutured on the floor, and limited to no pain management is available at the hospital. WHO staff said that the emergency department is so full that care must be exercised to not step on patients on the floor.
UN workers delivering aid to Gaza hospital describe ‘bloodbath’ in overflowing emergency department
(16.12.2023)
UN workers delivering medical supplies to the Al-Shifa Hospital in north Gaza on 16 December have described the emergency department as a “bloodbath”, with hundreds of injured people inside, and a constant flow of new patients.
UN confirms more aid entering Gaza as humanitarian pause holds for second day
(November 25, 2023)
The freight included food, water and emergency medical supplies. Eleven ambulances, 3 coaches and a flatbed were delivered to Al Shifa hospital to be used to assist with evacuations.
Also on Saturday, another 200 trucks were dispatched from Nitzana, with 187 of them successfully entering Gaza by 19:00 local time.
In addition, 129,000 liters of fuel crossed into Gaza, said the UN humanitarian affairs office, known as OCHA.
#BREAKING: Israel has arrested the director of Shifa hospital, Muhammad Abu Salmiya, and have taken him to an interrogation – @ItayBlumental reports. In recent days, @IDFSpokesperson showed evidance Hamas HQ and tunnels were operating in the hospital, hostages were brought to the hospital on the 7/10
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak on Israel‘s Al-Shifa hospital claims
Christiane Amanpour speaks to former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, as Israel is under pressure to provide evidence for its claim that Hamas uses Al-Shifa hospital as a command center.
Ehud Barak says Bunkers were built to provide space for the hospital
(21.11.2023)
“Decades ago, we were running the place, so we held them for decades, many decades ago, maybe five or four decades ago, that we helped them to build these bunkers in order to enable more space for the operation of the hospital within the very limited size of this compound,” explained Barak.
Former Israeli PM Ehud Barak says Israel built bunkers underneath Shifa hospital
Nov 21, 2023
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak said that Israel has built bunkers underneath Shifa hospital in Gaza while speaking to CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Monday.
Israel had previously said that there was a Hamas command centre under Shifa hospital before encircling and raiding it, later revealing they had found a small amount of guns, combat gear and a laptop.
BILD in der Hamas-Klinik in Gaza: Auf dem Gelände des Krankenhauses fand die israelische Armee einen Terror-Tunnel!
Al-Shifa Hospital: Architecture and Expansion
The hospital underwent a major Israeli renovation and expansion.[21][22] The project was designed by Israeli architects Gershon Tzapor and Benjamin Edelson in their Tel-Aviv office, both well experienced in the construction of high standard hospitals.[21] The project was done in the 1980s as part of a project to improve the living conditions of Gaza residents.[23]
This project came as part of the Israeli idea of mutual existence between Jews and Arabs. The project intended to house 900 beds in the entire campus, a 50 dunam area. The Israeli additions were considered to be in the same standard as those hospital wings in Israeli hospitals such as Tel HaShomer.[21] The architecture of the hospital came to reflect the modernist and post modernist trends in Israeli architecture.[21] In particular was the similarity of the project to existing Israeli hospitals such as the facades of the Bezalel building in Jerusalem.[22] Similarly to other Israeli projects, the building was built with sharpened diagonal staircases, akin to projects by Israeli architects Dan Eitan, Shlomit Nadler and others at the time.[22]
The architects also designed and built a large array of underground infrastructure, which the IDF later pointed to as part of the underground Hamas command in 2014 and in the 2023 Israel-Hamas war.[21][10][8][22] In particular, in 1983, the Israelis built „a secure underground operating room and tunnel network“ beneath Building 2 of the hospital.[
Top Secret Hamas Command Bunker in Gaza Revealed
(July 29, 2014)
The Israelis are so sure about the location of the Hamas bunker, however, not because they are trying to score propaganda points, or because it has been repeatedly mentioned in passing by Western reporters—but because they built it. Back in 1983, when Israel still ruled Gaza, they built a secure underground operating room and tunnel network beneath Shifa hospital—which is one among several reasons why Israeli security sources are so sure that there is a main Hamas command bunker in or around the large cement basement beneath the area of Building 2 of the Hospital, which reporters are obviously prohibited from entering.
This looks like one of the entrances to the bunker we built in 1983.
OPERATIONAL UPDATE: IDF and ISA forces revealed a significant 55-meter-long terrorist tunnel, 10 meters underneath the Shifa Hospital complex during an intelligence-based operation. The tunnel entrance contains various defense mechanisms, such as a blast-proof door and a firing hole, in an attempt by Hamas to block Israeli forces from entering.
For weeks we‘ve been telling the world about Hamas‘ cynical use of the residents of the Gaza and patients of Shifa Hospital as human shields.
Here is more proof.
IDF southern command chief: ‘We see clear Hamas presence in all hospitals’
Palestinian terror group Hamas has a “clear presence” in all Gaza hospitals, said Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, head of the IDF Southern Command, on Friday.
Finkelman carried out an assessment at al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, telling troops, “We see the presence of Hamas in all hospitals, it is a clear presence. They make cynical use of the hospitals, like here in the heart of Shifa.”
Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #42
– The World Food Programme (WFP) has reported an increase in cases of dehydration and malnutrition and warned about the threat of starvation due to the collapsed food supply chain and insufficient aid delivery. Only 10 per cent of necessary food supplies have entered Gaza since the beginning of the hostilities.
– On 17 November, for the third consecutive day, Israeli troops, accompanied by tanks, operated within the Shifa hospital compound in Gaza city. According to hospital administrators , since 11 November, 40 patients, including four premature babies, have died in the hospital due to the lack of electricity.
Israeli spokesman @jconricus told BBC images of Israeli hostages found on laptops in Shifa hospital were taken after they were kidnapped on Oct 7. But in a now deleted video Conricus showed only one old photo of one hostage that was used in news reports.
The White House says it remains “convinced of the soundness” of intelligence it says shows Hamas using Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza as a command node, but again declined to provide any further details of what led to that assessment. (CNN)
„Back in 1983, when Israel still ruled Gaza, they built a secure underground operating room & tunnel network beneath Shifa hospital.“ This is why Israel is so certain it exists. But why did Israel build a military HQ under Gaza‘s largest hospital?
Al-Shifa Hospital: Architecture and Expansion
The hospital underwent a major Israeli renovation and expansion.[21][22] The project was designed by Israeli architects Gershon Tzapor and Benjamin Edelson in their Tel-Aviv office, both well experienced in the construction of high standard hospitals.[21] The project was done in the 1980s as part of a project to improve the living conditions of Gaza residents.[23]
This project came as part of the Israeli idea of mutual existence between Jews and Arabs. The project intended to house 900 beds in the entire campus, a 50 dunam area. The Israeli additions were considered to be in the same standard as those hospital wings in Israeli hospitals such as Tel HaShomer.[21] The architecture of the hospital came to reflect the modernist and post modernist trends in Israeli architecture.[21] In particular was the similarity of the project to existing Israeli hospitals such as the facades of the Bezalel building in Jerusalem.[22] Similarly to other Israeli projects, the building was built with sharpened diagonal staircases, akin to projects by Israeli architects Dan Eitan, Shlomit Nadler and others at the time.[22]
The architects also designed and built a large array of underground infrastructure, which the IDF later pointed to as part of the underground Hamas command in 2014 and in the 2023 Israel-Hamas war.[21][10][8][22] In particular, in 1983, the Israelis built „a secure underground operating room and tunnel network“ beneath Building 2 of the hospital.[
During the morning, they inserted cartons claiming to be aid into Shifa. Medical doctors said back then that they didn’t receive any of the aid. Come evening, those very cartons resurfaced, magically transformed into supposed evidence of weapons within the hospital.
Israeli forces have stormed the emergency department of al-Shifa Hospital with tanks stationed in the yard of the medical complex, reports Al Jazeera‘s Tareq Abu Azzoum.
White House says intelligence shows Hamas using al-Shifa hospital for command node, storing weapons
„hey have stored weapons there and they are prepared to respond to an Israeli military operation against that facility.”
Kirby presented no evidence to back up his statement. Israel has claimed for years that Gaza militants have been building key tunnel infrastructure under the hospital – allegations that doctors in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip have always vehemently denied.
Israeli tanks and bulldozers on hospital campus but information remains scarce, reports al-Shifa hospital‘s Dr. Mokhallalati.
More than 4600 children among the 11180 deaths in Gaza strip
Out of the total deaths, 4,609 were children and 3,100 were women, with more than 28,000 others injured, said Ismail Al-Thawabteh, Director of the Gaza government‘s media office, in a press conference at Shifa Medical Complex.
Medical teams demonstrated at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younes, expressing solidarity with their colleagues in northern Gaza, a plea emerges: „Today, we witness our colleagues facing a siege to death in Shifa, Indonesi & Quds Hospital. We urgently call upon the world to intervene”
1. I can report that 3 Doctors Without Borders/MSF staff currently at Shifa Hospital said today they‘ve never seen the woman in this apparently fake video which was viewed +12 million times before being deleted from an Israeli gov‘t account. This closely echoes a 2011 hoax …
2. In 2011, the Israeli gov‘t shared a YouTube video by a man who claimed to be an Israeli gay rights activist who said he was discriminated against by Gaza flotilla organizers. The video was exposed as a hoax and @jonronson set out to find the actor in
3. 3. The actor refused to say who made the video but as I reported at the time it was boosted by @DavidSaranga an Israeli diplomat who taught students to promote Israel online with guerrilla marketing. Saranga is now director of digital diplomacy @IsraelMFA.
4. As @marcowenjones reports, the anti-Hamas video supposedly recorded in a Gaza hospital this week was shared by an official Israeli government account for communicating with Arabic speakers — before being deleted amid widespread suspicion that it was fake.
Biden says Gaza hospitals ‚must be protected‘
U.S. President Joe Biden said hospitals in the Gaza Strip must be protected and he hoped for „less intrusive“ action by Israel as Israeli tanks advanced to the gates of the besieged enclave‘s main hospital.
Israeli tanks have taken up positions outside Al Shifa Hospital, Gaza City‘s main medical centre, which Israel says sits atop tunnels housing a headquarters for Hamas fighters who are using patients as shields.
„This has to stop!” Tanya Haj-Hassan, Co-founder of Gaza Medic Voices reacts strongly to news of the attacks on al-Shifa and other hospitals in Gaza
(11.11.2023)
Deeply worrisome and frightening: @WHO has lost contact with its focal points in Al-Shifa Hospital in #Gaza, amid horrifying reports of the hospital facing repeated attacks. There are reports that some of those who fled the hospital have been shot at, wounded, or killed. The latest reports say the hospital was surrounded by tanks.
(2 hours ago)
WHO is gravely concerned about the safety of health workers, hundreds of sick and injured patients, including babies on life support, and displaced people who remain inside the hospital.
WHO again calls for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza as the only way to save lives and reduce the horrific levels of suffering.
.@WHO has lost communication with its contacts in Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza. As horrifying reports of the hospital facing repeated attacks continue to emerge, we assume our contacts joined tens of thousands of displaced people and are fleeing the area.
(2 hours ago)
There are reports that some people who fled the hospital have been shot at, wounded and even killed.
Over the past 48 hours, Al-Shifa Hospital–which is the largest medical complex in Gaza–has been reportedly attacked multiple times, leaving several people dead and many others injured.
The intensive care unit suffered damage from bombardment, while areas of the hospital where displaced people were sheltering have also been damaged. An intubated patient reportedly died when electricity was at one point cut.
The last reports said that the hospital was surrounded by tanks.
The Letter that Outraged Us: The Physicians‘ Letter Calling for the Destruction of Shifa Hospital in Gaza
(06.11.2023)
Dozens of Israeli physicians signed a letter urging the military to destroy the “hornet nests and the hospitals shielding them” in the Gaza Strip. The letter indicates that its authors consider the civilians in these hospitals to be legitimate targets – as if they can choose to leave; as if there’s a safe way out and another hospital able to take them in.
Following their appeal, we drafted the response letter below, undersigned by physicians and health professionals working in hospitals and in the community: (…)
No person with a conscience can remain indifferent to the massacre of civilians, including men, women, and children, carried out on October 7, 2023, by Hamas militants – the scale of which has yet to be fully revealed. However, our deep outrage must not be transformed into a carte blanche for killing civilians in the Gaza Strip, where residents are also counting the wounded and dead – certainly not when physicians are the ones demanding this. Fortunately, the letter’s signatories represent only a small minority of the health community, while the vast majority remains busy saving lives – no matter whose lives it may be.
How many war crimes before the @UN does something:
intense israeli bombing with white phosphorus all around al-Shifa Hospital in #Gaza
Israel claims misfired projectile launched from inside Gaza was responsible for hit on al-Shifa hospital
The IDF said that an examination of its operational systems indicated that “a misfired projectile launched by terrorist organizations inside the Gaza Strip hit the Shifa Hospital.”
Hecht went on to claim that the projectile had been aimed at “IDF troops operating in the vicinity.”
Several social media videos emerged online Friday showing injured people lying on the ground of the outpatient clinic following the strike.
HAPPENING NOW: Heavy bombardment around AlShifa hospital & targeting the entrance of the hospital. Shrapnel & debris are also falling on the compound. White phosphorous is being used heavily. 1000s remain inside (injured, patients, medical staff, displaced families)
(3 hours ago)