The Israeli military has said it found weapons and other equipment used by the militant group Hamas after entering Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, a major complex that is the territory’s largest medical centre.
Speaking subsequently on CNN, military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hecht did not mention which arms had been found, but said more information would be provided.
“We understand that there’s a substantial Hamas infrastructure in the area, in the vicinity of the hospital. Potentially under the hospital, and it’s something we’re working on. It’ll take us time. This war is a complex war,” Hecht said.
Hecht said the Israelis forces went into a specific area inside the hospital, adding that “There wasn’t an all-out attack.”
He said fire was exchanged before the Israeli soldiers moved into the hospital but there was “no engagement whatsoever” once they had entered.
Israeli troops first clashed with Hamas fighters on the street outside Al-Shifa Hospital, killing four militants, according to a senior Israeli defense official who briefed the media.
The official said troops then entered before dawn Wednesday, local time, to search a specific part of the hospital complex, which he did not name. There, the troops found weapons, though the official did not offer any further details.
Hamas denounced the actions by the Israeli military early Wednesday and it denied the assertion by the Israeli military and U.S. officials that militants were embedded in the hospital.
Hundreds of patients and staff were still inside Al-Shifa when Israeli troops entered. On Tuesday, Al-Shifa officials reported that the hospital had buried 170 people in a mass grave.
Israel’s military said in a statement that “troops delivered humanitarian aid” to Al-Shifa.
