‘Most unethical army in the world’ – Palestine Chronicle assesses the damage at Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital
Al-Shifa Medical Complex after Israeli army withdrawal, April 2024
Abdallah Aljamal reports in The Palestine Chronicle on 1 April 2024:
At dawn on Monday, April 1, Israeli occupation forces suddenly withdrew from the Al-Shifa Medical Complex following a two-week siege and constant attacks.
When they learned about the withdrawal, Gaza City residents converged on the area west of Gaza City to survey the damage caused by the Israeli incursion and to assess the conditions of their homes, which they were forced to evacuate.
What they encountered was shocking.
The Palestine Chronicle spoke with three eyewitnesses, including two journalists, who were met with scenes of absolute devastation when they reached the vicinity of the hospital.
Israel has Violated Everything
“Everything in the complex is destroyed. All the buildings of the hospital were bombed and are no longer usable,” Palestinian journalist Badr Abdel Aal told The Palestine Chronicle. “The Al-Shifa Medical Complex is the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip, and it is the lifeline of the health sector in Gaza,” he noted. “But now, it is destroyed, and the occupation has completely taken it out of service. Israel must be held accountable for the crimes it committed in Al-Shifa,” Abdel All told us.
“All media outlets documented the crimes throughout these months and they are still there. This crime, however, cannot pass without accountability,” he continued. “The occupation has violated everything in the Gaza Strip, and nobody in the world seems to be determined to stop them. Rather, major global powers are complicit and partners in massacring our Palestinian people.”
‘We Did Not Expect All This Destruction’
Ayman Hattou is another journalist who witnessed the degree of devastation left behind by the Israeli army. He compared today’s obliteration to what he saw last November, when Israeli forces stormed the complex for the first time.
“In November, the destruction was confined to the external areas and only part of the buildings were damaged,” Hattou told us. “We did not expect all of this. This time, the Israeli army left destruction and devastation in all the buildings of the complex. They were all bombed and burned. There is no usable building or floor,” he added.
“The scene that appeared in front of us this morning was like the destruction caused by the Mongols who invaded Iraq hundreds of years ago,” Hattou noted. “This time around, however, everything was documented by cameras. It is crystal clear that the Israeli army is the most unethical army in the world, they have no red lines.”