Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused the Israeli army of unlawful attacks on Gaza’s medical facilities, urging an investigation into war crimes and calling for an immediate end to hospital strikes, in a report on November 14.
On November 14, Human Rights Watch (HRW) stated that the Israeli army’s repeated “unlawful attacks on medical facilities, personnel and transport are further destroying Gaza’s healthcare system and should be investigated as war crimes.” HRW urged Israel to cease attacks on hospitals, rejecting the claim that Hamas is using them and emphasizing a lack of evidence justifying the removal of protected status from hospitals and ambulances under international humanitarian law.
HRW is investigating attacks on or around the Indonesian Hospital, al-Ahli Hospital, the International Eye Care Center, the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, and the al-Quds Hospital between October 7 and November 7. It emphasized the need to avoid disproportionate and indiscriminate attacks on hospitals, particularly in densely populated areas, where even the threat or minor damage can have severe consequences for patients and caregivers.
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Amid reports of premature babies dying due to a lack of electricity and patients facing gunfire, a Doctors Without Borders surgeon described the dire conditions inside Al-Shifa Hospital as “very bad,” citing a lack of electricity, water and food. Israel accuses Hamas of using tunnels under the hospital as a command center, a charge denied by Hamas. While Israel asserts it is not targeting the hospital, it has vowed to destroy Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks.
Gabriela De La Cruz, with AFP
