Israel has been waiting for the “right time to act” at Al-Shifa Hospital in central Gaza, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Monday.
Speaking at his daily news conference, Hagari alleged that Hamas individuals had “fled to the area of the hospital, hid in it, and turned it into a headquarters.” He said the IDF has been “following this compound for some time and have been waiting for the right time to act.”
Israeli forces surrounded the Al-Shifa Medical Complex early Monday, where the Ministry of Health in Gaza said about 30,000 people are sheltering.
Hagari said an “exchange of fire ensued” after alleging that “surprised terrorists barricaded themselves in a number of buildings in the hospital and opened fire at our forces.” Israeli forces returned fire and killed more than 20 people described as “terrorists” inside the hospital.
He said that an IDF soldier was killed in the operation.
Hagari also said that the IDF also arrested over 200 “terror suspects.”
Israel also released an edited video of the operation at Al-Shifa Hospital. In the footage, soldiers can be seen moving through what appears to be the hospital building and firing their weapons.
Some of the IDF’s handout footage was blurred. One of the images appears to be a dead body, which the IDF labeled as an “eliminated terrorist.”
CNN cannot independently verify the claims in the video. It is unclear if the video was filmed in one location as it appears to show multiple places. In parts of the edited IDF video, the audio has been removed.
CNN’s Celine Alkhaldi contributed to this report.
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