WATCH: Terrorist admits Hamas used Kamal Adwan Hospital as shield against IDF
Hamas terrorist captured in the hospital confirms it serves as terror base
A Hamas terrorist confirmed that the terror group knowingly used the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza as a shield against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), believing the Israeli army wouldn’t dare to operate near the hospital out of concern for civilians.
This was revealed by footage published by the IDF on Tuesday, showing parts of the interrogation of 21-year-old terrorist Anas Muhammad Faiz al-Sharif, a Hamas operative who was arrested by troops of the 401st Brigade and Intelligence Unit 504 in Kamal Adwan Hospital.
The Israeli army recently completed a large-scale operation in the area, which received much international scrutiny as Kamal Adwan was the last functioning hospital in the northern strip.
Approximately 940 people were evacuated from the hospital and its surrounding areas, of whom 240 were found to be terrorists. Of those detained, 15 reportedly took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, invasion and massacre.
📍𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗽: 𝗛𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗞𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗱𝘄𝗮𝗻 𝗛𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) December 28, 2024
• 240+ Hamas, Islamic Jihad terrorists and other operatives suspected of terrorist activities were apprehended, some of whom attempted to pose as… pic.twitter.com/2oOCbeAsyQ
Many of the captured terrorists were considered “high value” due to their wealth of knowledge of the terror group’s inner workings. The IDF emphasized that the captured terrorists “have so far provided a lot of intelligence information which helps the IDF in its activities in the area.”
Al-Sharif said he worked as a cleaning supervisor in the hospital, while also working for Hamas’ elite Nukhba force, which he joined in 2021.
He told the interrogator that together with him, terrorists from Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other groups sought a “safe haven” at the hospital.
“Because there are civilians and patients there, they believe the army can’t bomb the location, like with an F-16 missile, or destroy the building,” he said.
He also described how the hospital was used to store weapons, as well as for observations and patrols. Al-Sharif’s testimony fit an earlier testimony by the hospital’s director, Ahmad Kahlot, which the IDF published in December.
“Hamas terrorists turned the hospital into a military facility, hiding its operatives there, using ambulances for transport and even holding a kidnapped Israeli soldier there,” he said. “They hide in hospitals because they believe that a hospital is a safe place. They will not be harmed if they are inside a hospital,” Kahlot added.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.