The Israeli army has launched an operation around Gaza's largest hospital, Al-Shifa, with witnesses reporting airstrikes on the devastated neighborhood where it is located.
Israeli soldiers are "currently conducting a precision operation in the Shifa Hospital area," the IDF said in a statement.
"The operation was based on intelligence indicating that the hospital was being used by senior Hamas terrorists.
Witnesses from Gaza City told AFP they saw tanks surrounding the hospital.
In November, the Israeli army also conducted an operation in Al-Shifa, which sparked an international outcry.
According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, tens of thousands of Palestinians displaced by the war have sought refuge in the hospital complex.
Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of conducting military operations from hospitals and other medical centers, but the group denies these claims.
The media office of the Hamas government in Gaza condemned the operation, saying that "storming the al-Shifa medical complex with tanks, drones and weapons and shooting at it is a war crime."
Since the beginning of the war, the Israeli army has carried out several operations against medical facilities in the Gaza Strip.
According to the Israeli military, the soldiers "were instructed on the importance of precautionary actions, as well as the measures to be taken to avoid harm to patients, civilians, medical personnel and to protect medical equipment."
The statement also said that Arabic speakers had been sent to "facilitate dialogue with the patients who remained in the hospital".
It added: "Patients and medical staff are not required to evacuate."
After its November 15 operation in al-Shifa, the Israeli military said it had found weapons and other military equipment hidden at the site, claims that Hamas denies.
She also claimed to have discovered a 55-meter tunnel in the basement and shared footage she said proved hostages were held there, which Hamas also denies.
According to UN data, 155 health facilities in the Gaza Strip have been damaged since the beginning of the war./BGNES
