Israeli forces have arrested the director and dozens of staff members of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, the last major functioning health facility in the area, according to the territory's ministry of health. The raid, which occurred after months of Israeli assaults on the hospital, has rendered the facility out of service, as confirmed by the World Health Organization.
Reports indicate that patients, including those on ventilators, were left inside the hospital following the raid. The whereabouts of the hospital director, Dr. Abu Safiya, and other staff members remain unclear, with eyewitnesses stating that Dr. Safiya was assaulted before being detained.
Dr. Safiya had posted on social media about the Israeli forces besieging the hospital and issuing evacuation orders. Subsequently, staff and patients were forced to leave the hospital and gather outside, where they were separated by gender and instructed to remove their clothes. Those who refused were reportedly beaten.
After being held for hours, the staff and patients were relocated to the nearby Indonesian Hospital, which the WHO has described as destroyed and nonfunctional. Israeli forces allegedly interrogated the staff individually inside a truck parked outside the hospital, leading to the arrest of several young men.
The IDF claimed to have conducted targeted operations around the hospital based on intelligence regarding terrorist infrastructure and operatives. While the IDF stated that it assisted in evacuating staff and patients before the operation, reports emerged of a large fire breaking out in the hospital, resulting in injuries and one patient's death.
Despite the IDF's assertion that the fire was in an empty building and under control, staff members reported significant damage to various hospital departments. The WHO previously highlighted the denial of humanitarian access to Kamal Adwan Hospital by Israeli authorities and the refusal to deploy international emergency medical teams for urgent surgical interventions.
Some patients from Kamal Adwan Hospital were transferred to Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, where footage showed individuals, including women, children, and those with special needs, recounting their experiences. One patient, Khaled Hazzaa, described being subjected to gunfire and physical abuse during the raid, while another woman, Fatmeh Al Najjar, shared her ordeal of seeking treatment after losing her son in an Israeli strike.
