Israel Turns Gaza Hospital into 'Military Base': Health Ministry

"Occupation forces detained a large number of medical staff members inside Nasser Medical Complex, which they (the forces) turned into a military base," said Gaza's health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra on Saturday.

The hospital, located in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, was raided by Israeli troops on Thursday. The attack targeted hundreds of displaced Palestinians seeking shelter inside the facility from the Israeli military campaign.

The Israeli military has claimed that it was searching for Palestinian fighters inside the hospital and has arrested 100 suspects thus far.

Since October 7, 2023, when the Israeli onslaught on Gaza began, the Israeli regime's military has used this claim to justify attacks and sieges on Gaza's hospitals.

The Israeli regime's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has vowed to carry out a ground invasion against the nearby southern Gaza city of Rafah, which is home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees.

Netanyahu criticized those who opposed military action, stating that they were effectively advocating for Tel Aviv to "lose the war."

Last week, Netanyahu ordered the evacuation of civilians from Rafah ahead of a planned ground operation. However, aid organizations say this will be nearly impossible due to the scale of devastation in Gaza and the large number of trapped people.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that two Palestinian doctors, kidnapped a week ago by Israeli forces from a Gaza hospital, had been subjected to torture and beating before being released.

In a report, Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor cited testimonies from recently released Palestinians who had been tortured and beaten in Israeli detention centers, describing it as a grave violation of dignity and a war crime.

At least eight Palestinian men have died in Israeli custody since the conflict began, most in the days and weeks following their arrest.

Nearly 29,000 Palestinians, mostly women, children, and adolescents, have died so far as a result of the brutal military onslaught.