Current:Home > ContactIsraeli military detains director of Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital -FundSphere
Israeli military detains director of Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital
View
Date:2025-04-27 12:55:16
The director of Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital, the largest in the Palestinian territory, was arrested Thursday by Israeli forces who said it was over the facility's alleged use by Hamas.
Hospital director Muhammad Abu Salamiya has been frequently quoted by international media about the conditions inside Al-Shifa, a major focus of an Israeli ground offensive following attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas on Oct. 7.
The Israeli army, which raided the hospital last week, has alleged that Hamas fighters used a tunnel complex beneath the facility in Gaza City to stage attacks.
Hamas and hospital officials have repeatedly denied the claims.
Palestinian health officials said Salmiya, another doctor and two nurses had been arrested.
- Israel-Hamas war rages with cease-fire delayed
The hospital director was held for questioning following "evidence showing that Shifa Hospital, under his direct management, served as a Hamas command and control center," the Israeli military said in a statement.
There was "extensive Hamas terrorist activity" at the hospital while it was "under his management," it said, adding that a Hamas tunnel network used electricity and other resources from the facility.
Whether the director would be subject to further questioning would depend on whether he was found to have "involvement in terrorist activity," it said.
In a statement, Hamas said it "strongly denounces" the arrest of Salmiya and his colleagues, calling on the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international bodies to work towards their "immediate release".
On Thursday evening, Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said the Indonestian Hospital in Gaza City was "heavily bombarded."
"The generators were hit, as well as a significant part of the building," he said. "We are worried" about the patients and staff in the hospital, he added.
Qudra added that 180 patients and staff remained at Al-Shifa.
"We demand their evacuation," Qudra said. "They don't have any more electricity, food or water.
"The Israeli army shoots at the hospital and repeats over the loudspeaker that they must leave, threatening to bomb them," he said.
Al-Shifa hospital has seen extended Israeli special forces operations as part of Israel's war against Gaza militants, and on Wednesday, troops escorted journalists to a tunnel shaft at the complex which they said was part of a vast underground network used by Hamas.
Instructions to evacuate the hospital were issued on Saturday, prompting an exodus of hundreds of patients and displaced, with Salmiya telling AFP last week that he had received the evacuation order from Israeli forces.
But the Israeli army said the evacuations were carried out at the "request" of Salmiya.
The military released an audio recording presented as a conversation between Salmiya and a senior Israeli officer in which the two men blame each other for the evacuation.
On Thursday, the Palestinian Red Crescent said it joined forces with the United Nations to evacuate a further 190 wounded and sick people, their companions and medical staff from Al-Shifa to other hospitals in southern Gaza.
The evacuation took nearly 20 hours due to delays at the checkpoint separating northern and southern Gaza, it said on social media, adding that three paramedics had been detained, two of whom were subsequently released.
The Hamas-run government in Gaza says nearly 15,000 people have been killed since the Israeli military campaign began, most of them women and children.
It started after Hamas gunmen poured across the border in an unprecedented attack on Oct. 7. Israeli officials say about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed, and around 240 taken hostage.
- In:
- Hamas
- Israel
- Gaza Strip
veryGood! (413)
Related
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- PACCAR, Hyundai, Ford, Honda, Tesla among 165k vehicles recalled: Check car recalls here
- Early voting to start in Wisconsin for president and constitutional amendments
- When does 'Euphoria' Season 3 come out? Sydney Sweeney says filming begins soon
- Could your smelly farts help science?
- New York to probe sputtering legal marijuana program as storefronts lag, black market booms
- MGM Casino Denies Claims Bruno Mars Owes $50 Million Gambling Debt
- Country Music Hall of Fame: Toby Keith, James Burton, John Anderson are the 2024 inductees
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Federal court rules firearm restrictions on defendants awaiting trial are constitutional
Ranking
- California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
- Student at Alabama A&M University injured in shooting
- Discrimination lawsuit brought by transgender athlete sent back to Minnesota trial court
- Arizona governor vetoes bill that some lawmakers hoped would help fix housing crisis
- Tree trimmer dead after getting caught in wood chipper at Florida town hall
- ‘Access Hollywood’ tape won’t be played at Donald Trump’s hush-money criminal trial, judge rules
- Former Vice President Mike Pence calls Trump's Jan. 6 hostage rhetoric unacceptable
- Why Rachel Nance Says She Walked Away From The Bachelor a True Winner
Recommendation
Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
Why Rachel Nance Says She Walked Away From The Bachelor a True Winner
Social media influencer is charged with joining the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol
Uber driver hits and kills a toddler after dropping her family at their Houston home
Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
Why Bella Hadid's Morning Wellness Routine Is Raising Eyebrows
Women's NCAA Tournament 2024: Full schedule, times, how to watch all March Madness games
‘Access Hollywood’ tape won’t be played at Donald Trump’s hush-money criminal trial, judge rules