Palestinian deaths in Al-Shifa hospital area climb to 150: Israeli army

JERUSALEM (AA) - The number of Palestinian deaths in the Al-Shifa Hospital area in western Gaza rose to 150, the Israeli army said on Friday.

“The Israeli army and Shin Bet forces continue targeted fighting in the area of Shifa Hospital,” the Israeli army said on X.

Israeli soldiers killed about 150 Palestinians and arrested hundreds of “suspects,” the army said.

It also claimed finding weapons in the area.

Meanwhile, Palestinian sources said the killings and arrests included displaced civilians sheltering in the Al-Shifa hospital.

The Israeli army also indicated that its incursions into various areas in the Gaza Strip are still ongoing.

On Thursday, the Israeli army reported that it had intercepted a missile fired from the central region of the Gaza Strip toward the Be'eri settlement.

It added that in response, its aircraft attacked a "military structure in the region."

Since early Monday, the Israeli army has been carrying out an offensive against Al-Shifa Hospital and its surrounding areas, putting the lives of dozens of thousands of Palestinians in the hospital and around it in danger.

On Wednesday, Israeli Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi admitted that the attack on the hospital aimed to “pressure” Hamas during the ongoing negotiations in Qatar to reach a hostage exchange deal.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since the Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by Palestinian group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

Nearly 32,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and around 74,200 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara