Seventy Hamas terrorists emerged from the Kamal Adwan Hospital on Thursday, weapons in hand, after an intense firefight with Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops in the Beit Lahiya area of northern Gaza.
Pro-Palestinian media sources, such as Al Jazeera — a virtual Hamas propaganda outlet throughout the war — had suggested that Israel had attacked the hospital without provocation, and cited Palestinian government sources who claimed that Israel was “rounding up men and boys” there.
The reality emerged on Wednesday, when armed terrorists emerged from the hospital, having used it as a base for military attacks, in stark violation of international humanitarian law.
יוצאים מבית החולים עם נשקים: לוחמי צה״ל מצוות קרב חטיבה 460 ולוחמי שב״כ עצרו עשרות פעילי טרור שיצאו מבית חולים ברצועת עזה ולקחו אותם להמשך חקירה של שב״כ ויחידה 504 באגף המודיעין>> pic.twitter.com/lS29A9b9hN
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) December 14, 2023
The IDF and the Israel Security Agency [ISA] said in a statement:
During operational activity in the area of the Kamal Adwan Hospital, IDF troops located a building used by Hamas terrorist operatives and located weapons inside. Additionally, during engagements with terrorists in the area of the hospital, a number of terrorists were killed by IDF troops.
During IDF activity in the area, over 70 terrorist operatives came out of the hospital with weapons in hand. The terrorists were transferred to field interrogators from Unit 504 in the Intelligence Directorate and ISA coordinators for further questioning.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), the leader of the “Progressive Caucus” in the U.S. House of Representatives, who had accused Israel on CNN — without evidence — of targeting hospitals, had also admitted that hospitals would lose their “protected” status under international law if terrorists were firing from the hospital. Wednesday presented a clear case of the latter.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
