November 15, 2023 Israel-Hamas war

Israeli tanks and military vehicles are “inside the courtyard of Al-Shifa Hospital,” Khader Al Za’anoun, a reporter for the Palestinian news agency, Wafa, told CNN.

Israeli soldiers were “in the buildings and departments (and) are conducting search and interrogation operations with the young men amidst intense and violent gunfire inside the hospital," the reporter added.

The Israeli military said early Wednesday morning it was “carrying out a precise and targeted operation at Al-Shifa, Gaza's biggest hospital. It accuses Hamas militants of operating beneath its structure – an allegation the militant group and hospital officials deny. 

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Peter Lerner told CNN on Wednesday the operation at the hospital was "precise" and "ongoing."

“Our operation that was launched in the early hours of this morning in the area of Shifa Hospital was precise, located at [a] specific location within the hospital grounds, within the complex of the hospital. And indeed it was based on operational necessity and intelligence, and the operation is ongoing. I won't go into specifics of where or how the activities are ongoing but I can confirm it is ongoing,” Lerner told CNN’s John Vause.

Asked whether Israeli forces had informed officials in Gaza ahead of the raid, Lerner said: “We work on the basis of international humanitarian law and the laws of armed conflict. And when approaching the hospital we indeed informed the administrators to keep away from the windows to make sure that the patients and civilians inside the complex keep away from the windows and take cover because we intend on conducting our military operation in order to differentiate and distinguish between the civilians and the terrorists.”

Some context: Earlier this week doctors at Al-Shifa hospital refused an Israeli military evacuation order because of fear that approximately 700 at-risk patients will die if left behind, according to Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, Director-General of the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza.

“The problem is not the doctors, it’s the patients. And if they are left behind, they will die, and if they are transferred they will die on the way, this is the problem, we are talking about 700 patients,” Dr. Al-Bursh told CNN Monday.

The Israeli military said it is conducting a raid inside Gaza’s biggest hospital Al-Shifa as it targets Hamas militants it claims are operating beneath the structure — which the militant group and hospital officials deny. 

Thousands of Palestinians are believed to be sheltering in and around the hospital, where conditions have rapidly deteriorated with doctors working by candlelight and wrapping premature babies in foil to keep them alive. 

Here’s what we know so far:

The raid: On early Wednesday morning, local time, the Israeli military said it was “carrying out a precise and targeted operation against Hamas in a specified area in the Shifa Hospital” in Gaza.  

Hospitals are protected in times of war under international humanitarian law, but Israel said in a statement that Hamas’s “continued military use of the Shifa hospital jeopardizes its protected status.” 

Israel believes it has given Hamas operatives sufficient time to cease their alleged activities inside the building, according to the statement.  

The United States on Tuesday cited intelligence suggesting Hamas has a command node under the hospital, seeming to back Israel’s assertion. CNN cannot independently verify the US or Israeli claims. 

Israeli army spokesman Peter Lerner told CNN the presence of civilians at the hospital makes the ground operation there “challenging.” He said Israeli forces were trying to “mitigate” the impact, citing the presence of medics and Arabic speakers among those carrying out the raid.  

What’s happening on the ground: Khaled Abu Samra, a doctor at the hospital, told CNN they were given 30 minutes’ warning before the Israeli operation on the complex began.

Khader Al Za’anoun, a journalist inside the hospital, told CNN that Israeli tanks had moved into the hospital complex, and there were gunfire exchanges across the yard. It’s unclear whether there are IDF soldiers inside the hospital buildings, Al Za’anoun said. 

What Palestinian authorities have said: Palestinian Health Minister Dr. Mai Al-Kaila said Wednesday the raid represented “a new crime against humanity, medical staff, and patients.” 

It could have “catastrophic consequences” for patients and medical staff, she said. Her health ministry is based in Ramallah and falls under the control of the Palestinian Authority (PA) -- and is separate from the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry in Gaza.

Hamas blamed both Israel and the US for the Israeli raid in a statement, claiming that the US had given Israel “a green light … to commit more massacres against civilians" by using Israel’s “false narrative” of Al-Shifa being used as a command center.

Both Israel and the United States are to blame for the Israeli army's raid on Gaza’s largest hospital, according to a statement from Hamas.

The raid on the Al-Shifa hospital also constituted a failure by the United Nations to defend Palestinians, Hamas said.

Hamas claimed the US had given Israel, “a green light … to commit more massacres against civilians" by supporting what it called Israel’s “false narrative” – that Hamas was using Al-Shifa hospital as a command and control base.

On Tuesday, the White House and the Pentagon said that Hamas is storing weapons and operating a command center from Al-Shifa hospital, citing newly declassified intelligence.

The remarks echoed claims made by Israel, which Palestinian hospital officials and Hamas have consistently rejected.

Hundreds of staff and patients are still inside Al-Shifa, according to the most recent reports from inside the hospital, along with several thousand who have sought shelter from Israel’s air and ground offensive.

Doctors reported Monday that premature babies at Gaza’s largest hospital were being wrapped in foil and placed next to hot water in a desperate bid to keep them alive.

Meanwhile, a reporter for the Al Arabiya network who was inside the hospital told CNN that people were too scared to flee due to the heavy fighting.

Global attention has turned to the hospital amid reports suggesting several patients, including children, have died in what the hospital’s director has called “catastrophic” conditions.

Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, the director-general of the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza, said Monday that medical staff had refused an Israel Defense Forces evacuation order because they fear approximately 700 patients would die if they were left behind.

A doctor present at Al-Shifa hospital told CNN they were given a 30-minute warning before the Israeli operation on the complex began early Wednesday.

Amid the deteriorating conditions, military spokesperson Peter Lerner told CNN that the Israeli forces were trying to "mitigate" the presence of civilians at Al-Shifa hospital – citing the presence of medics and Arabic speakers among those carrying out the raid – which was making the ground operation “challenging.”

Israeli tanks have breached Gaza's largest hospital complex, according to a journalist inside Al-Shifa.

There were gunfire exchanges across the yard, and some of the windows in one of the buildings were out, Al Za’anoun added.

Hundreds of staff and patients are still at Al-Shifa, according to the most recent reports from inside the hospital, along with several thousand people who have sought shelter from Israel’s air and ground offensive.

Some context: In a statement early Wednesday morning, the Israel Defense Forces said it is carrying out a "precise and targeted operation" in the hospital.

Israel believes it has given the Hamas operatives it accuses of being inside the hospital sufficient time to cease their activities inside the building, according to the statement.

Hospital officials have consistently rejected Israel’s claims that Hamas has built a command and control center under the hospital.

The Israel Defense Forces said it is carrying out a "precise and targeted operation" in Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza.

A statement accused Hamas of “continued military use of the Shifa hospital,” which, it said, “jeopardised the hospital’s protected status under international law.”

Israel believes it has given the Hamas operatives it accuses of being inside the hospital sufficient time to cease their activities inside the building, according to the statement.

Hospital officials have consistently rejected Israel’s claims that Hamas has built an important command center under the hospital, Gaza’s largest.

Hundreds of staff and patients are still at Al-Shifa, according to the most recent reports from inside the hospital, along with several thousand who have sought shelter from Israel’s air and ground offensive.

Medics "who have undergone specified training to prepare for this complex and sensitive environment" are among the Israeli forces carrying out the raid, the IDF said.

A doctor at Al Shifa told CNN they were given a 30-minute warning before the Israeli operation on the complex began.

“We were asked to stay clear of the windows and the balconies. We can hear the armored vehicles, they are very close to the entrance of the complex,” Dr. Khaled Abu Samra said.

Some background: On Tuesday, the White House and the Pentagon said that Hamas is storing weapons and operating a command center from Al-Shifa Hospital.

The remarks echoed claims made by Israel, which Palestinian hospital officials and Hamas have rejected.

The Pentagon said the US has newly declassified intelligence that claims to show that Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad were using hospitals — including Al-Shifa — as a “way to conceal and support their military operations and hold hostages."

Israel said it had launched a “targeted” military operation against Hamas early Wednesday morning inside Gaza’s largest hospital, Al-Shifa, where thousands of Palestinians are believed to be sheltering.

Conditions inside the hospital, which has run out of fuel and is no longer considered operational, have deteriorated rapidly in recent days amid intense fighting, with doctors warning of a “catastrophic” situation for patients, staff and displaced people still inside.

Hospitals are protected in times of war under international humanitarian law, but in its statement Wednesday, Israel again accused Hamas of continuing to use the large hospital complex for military purposes which, it said, “jeopardizes the hospital’s protected status under international law.”

The raid comes just hours after the Pentagon said the US has newly declassified intelligence that claims to show that Hamas was using hospitals — including Al-Shifa — as a “way to conceal and support their military operations and hold hostages.”

Hamas and hospital officials have consistently rejected these claims.

Here's what else to know