Israel says 170 Gaza gunmen killed in hospital raid
Lorenzo Tondo
Over 170 gunmen have been killed during a prolonged operation at the main hospital in Gaza, Israeli forces revealed on Saturday.
However, according to Hamas representatives, the deceased individuals identified in Israeli reports were not combatants but rather patients and displaced individuals. Hamas denounced Israel for alleged war crimes.
At the break of dawn on Monday, Israeli troops ventured into al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City and commenced a thorough search of the extensive facility, which the military claims is linked to a tunnel network serving as a base for Hamas and other Palestinian combatants.
“Thus far, the forces have neutralised in excess of 170 terrorists within the hospital vicinity, interrogated more than 800 suspects, and uncovered numerous weapons and infrastructure associated with terror activities,” stated the Israeli military.
The military disclosed on Thursday that over 350 militants from Hamas and Islamic Jihad have been apprehended at the hospital, marking the largest number captured simultaneously since the onset of the war last October.
Contrary to the military’s assertions, Hamas and medical personnel refute claims that the hospital is used for military purposes or to harbour fighters. Hamas representatives have recently contended that the deceased individuals previously identified in Israeli reports were not combatants but rather civilian patients.
Both the claims from Hamas and Israeli forces could not be independently verified.
Key events
Cameron urged to publish Foreign Office legal advice on Israel’s war in Gaza
Patrick Wintour
The shadow UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, has urged David Cameron to publish the Foreign Office formal legal advice on whether Israel is breaching international humanitarian law in Gaza.
Lammy’s move comes as two human rights groups have been given permission for an oral hearing to seek a judicial review of the government’s refusal to ban arms exports to Israel.
“Given the gravity of the situation in Gaza, the degree of public and parliamentary interest and the risks to the credibility of the UK’s export controls regime, there is a compelling case to publish the government’s legal advice,” Lammy wrote in a letter to Lord Cameron, the foreign secretary.
Arms export licences should not be granted if “there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law”, the letter said.
You can read Patrick Wintour’s full piece here:
The Guardian’s diplomatic editor, Patrick Wintour, has written a helpful explainer on what the US Gaza ceasefire resolution said and why Russia and China vetoed it. Here is an excerpt:
In the chamber, the Russian ambassador Vasily Nebenzya told the security council the resolution was a “hypocritical spectacle” that put no real pressure on Israel over its war crimes. Moscow also said the episode showed the US administration was more interested in throwing a bone to American voters and persuading a domestic audience it was being even-handed in the crisis.
Explaining Guyana’s abstention, the South American country’s representative Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett said: “Contrary to media reports, this resolution does not call for an immediate ceasefire.”
She also added the demand that a ceasefire should not be linked to or conditioned on the release of hostages. “Two wrongs cannot make a right and the Palestinian people should not be collectively punished and themselves held hostage for the crimes of others.
“If one were to read this resolution without background knowledge, it would be difficult to ascertain which party in this conflict is committing the atrocities in Gaza – atrocities which necessitated this draft resolution being put forward. In a resolution of 41 paragraphs, 2,036 words, the occupying power is mentioned once in the penultimate paragraph.”
You can read the full explainer here:
Here is a video from yesterday’s UN security council meeting where a US resolution urging a ceasefire in Gaza linked to a hostage deal was vetoed by Russia and China.
Eleven council members voted for the resolution on Friday morning; Russia, China and Algeria voted against and Guyana abstained. As Russia and China are permanent members their votes counted as vetoes.
Before the vote, the Russian envoy, Vasily Nebenzya, said any member voting for the resolution “will cover yourselves in disgrace”. The US envoy, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said after the vote that Russia and China had opposed the resolution because they could not bring themselves to support the clauses in it condemning Hamas.
Opening summary
It has just gone 11am in Gaza and Tel Aviv. This is our latest Guardian live blog on the Israel-Gaza war and the wider Middle East crisis.
Israeli forces fighting in Gaza have killed more than 170 gunmen during their days-long raid at Gaza’s main hospital, the military said on Saturday, according to a Reuters report.
Israeli troops entered al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City in the early hours of Monday morning and have been combing through the sprawling complex, which the military says is connected to a tunnel network used as a base for Hamas and other Palestinian fighters.
Hamas and medical staff deny that the hospital is used for military purposes or to shelter fighters.
More on that in a moment but first, a summary of the latest developments:
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A US resolution urging a ceasefire in Gaza linked to a hostage deal has been vetoed by Russia and China in the UN security council. Eleven council members voted for the resolution on Friday morning; Russia, China and Algeria voted against it and Guyana abstained. As permanent security council members the Russian and Chinese votes counted as vetoes.
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A vote at the UN security council on a new text calling for an “immediate” ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war was postponed to Monday, diplomatic sources told AFP.
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UN secretary general António Guterres is expected to visit Egypt’s border with Gaza on Saturday, after Israel vowed to send its troops to fight Hamas in the nearby city of Rafah, even without US support. During his visit, Guterres plans to reiterate his call for a humanitarian ceasefire.
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The shadow UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, has urged David Cameron to publish the Foreign Office formal legal advice on whether Israel is breaching international humanitarian law in Gaza. Lammy’s move comes as two human rights groups have been given permission for an oral hearing to seek a judicial review of the government’s refusal to ban arms exports to Israel.
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The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has said an Israeli offensive into the southern Gaza town of Rafah would risk “further isolating” Israel and damage its long-term security. Speaking as he left Israel on a short visit during his sixth Middle East trip since the start of the war, Blinken told reporters he had “candid conversations” with officials including prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior ministers.
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People living in Gaza are facing exorbitant food prices as more than one million residents of the Palestinian territory face famine. Aid officials have referred to Israel’s siege of Gaza as “man-made starvation”, with the territory facing the threat of mass deaths from famine in the coming weeks. Children are already dying from hunger. But an Israeli official on Friday denied that people in Gaza are suffering from starvation.
