Patients forced to flee al-Shifa hospital as Israeli army attacks hospital

Doctors inside Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital say they are witnessing “horrific scenes” as patients are forced to flee even while in urgent need of treatment.

Testimonies collected by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights accuse Israeli forces of using fire belts – incendiary weapons that unleash walls of flame – and sending explosives-packed vehicles around the hospital while advancing from its northern and eastern sides.

Medical workers report that the shelling has paralysed many operations, with doctors unable to reach the hospital and some already killed in the strikes.

Dr Hasan al-Sha’ir, al-Shifa’s medical director, told researchers that staff continued to work “despite the harsh conditions and overwhelming fear”, recalling earlier sieges in which Israeli forces killed and detained medical teams.

He said around 100 patients remain inside, struggling to survive in “extremely difficult circumstances”, with life-saving drugs and equipment running dangerously low.