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Israeli forces reportedly arrested the director of Gaza’s largest hospital, Al-Shifa, along with several medical personnel on Thursday, according to a doctor at the facility. The director, Mohammad Abu Salmiya, who has often spoken to international media about conditions inside Al-Shifa, was taken into custody.
The hospital was a focal point of the Israeli ground offensive following the October 7 attacks by operatives. The Israeli army, which conducted a raid on the hospital last week, alleges that Hamas fighters used a tunnel complex beneath Al-Shifa in Gaza City for staging attacks. Hamas and hospital officials have consistently denied these claims.
Salmiya told AFP last week that he had received the evacuation order from Israeli forces after having refused a previous one.
But the Israeli army said the evacuations were carried out at the “request” of Abu Salmiya.
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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.
Israeli officials claim Hamas operated a command center in tunnels under the hospital for years — an accusation the Islamist movement and medical personnel reject.
On Wednesday, Israeli soldiers escorted journalists to a tunnel shaft they said was part of a vast underground network used by Hamas.