GAZA CITY, Palestine

Several intensive care patients were confirmed dead after the Israeli army set fire to multiple sections of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza on Friday after forcibly evacuating the facility, according to medical sources.

A source from the hospital told Anadolu the fire engulfed the surgery, laboratory, maintenance, and emergency departments.

The flames were reported to be spreading rapidly to other sections, with no means to extinguish them, as civil defense teams in the area remain non-operational and military vehicles surround the hospital.

The source added that Israeli forces threatened hospital Director Hossam Abu Safiya with arrest if the facility was not completely evacuated.

Despite the threats, Abu Safiya and several members of the medical staff refused to comply with the evacuation orders, according to the same source.

Patients unable to evacuate on foot, particularly those in intensive care, faced dire circumstances. While some were transferred to the Indonesian Hospital via ambulances, the facility is reportedly non-functional and incapable of accommodating patients, the source noted.

The source further reported that several intensive care patients were dead after the Israeli army cut off their oxygen supply.

Earlier in the day, the Israeli army stormed the hospital after forcing medical staff, patients, and their companions to evacuate to the building’s external courtyard, according to medical sources.

Israeli forces began raiding hospital departments after all individuals inside were compelled to leave. Once evacuated, injured patients and others in the courtyard were subjected to searches by Israeli soldiers, the source added.

For its part, the Israeli army said that it launched a military operation in the vicinity of the hospital.

A military statement said that “soldiers of the 401st Brigade under the command of the 162nd Division began operating in the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Jabaliya in the last few hours.”

The army alleged that the hospital serves as a Hamas stronghold in northern Gaza, where militants have been operating throughout the conflict.

Israel launched a large-scale ground offensive in northern Gaza on Oct. 5 to allegedly prevent the Palestinian group Hamas from regrouping. Palestinians, however, accuse Israel of seeking to occupy the area and forcibly displace its residents.

Since then, no sufficient humanitarian aid including food, medicine and fuel has been allowed into the area, leaving the remaining population on the verge of imminent famine.

Israel has killed more than 45,400 people in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, reducing the enclave to rubble.

Last month, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio