Israeli soldiers dressed as civilian women and paramedics stormed a hospital in the West Bank on Tuesday, killing three Palestinian militants, Israeli media reported.
The Israeli army said the militants had used the hospital as a hideout but offered no proof. They claimed one of those killed had passed weapons and ammunition to others for a planned attack allegedly inspired by a Hamas attack on southern Israel on 7 October.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said Israeli troops opened fire on Ibn Sina Hospital in the West Bank town of Jenin. A hospital spokesman said there was no exchange of fire, indicating it was a targeted killing.
Surveillance footage from the hospital shows about a dozen undercover officers, most of them armed, wearing Muslim headscarves, hospital gowns or white doctors’ dressing gowns. One of them carries a rifle in one hand and a folded wheelchair in the other.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meanwhile ruled out a withdrawal from Gaza and the release of thousands of imprisoned militants – two of Hamas’ main demands for any ceasefire – casting doubt on recent efforts to end the war that has destabilised the entire Middle East.
Netanyahu, speaking at an event elsewhere in the West Bank, repeated his vow to continue fighting until “absolute victory” over Hamas. He stated:
We will not end this war without achieving all of our goals. We will not withdraw the Israeli military from the Gaza Strip and we will not release thousands of terrorists.
He said the Hamas leadership had been invited to Cairo for further talks. In exchange for the remaining hostages, the militant group, which has struck lopsided swap deals with Israel in the past, is expected to demand the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners, including senior militants.
Qatar and Egypt, which are brokering talks with Hamas, have held talks with Israel and the United States in recent days. US officials said negotiators had made progress toward a deal, including the phased release of the remaining hostages within two months and the flow of more humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The war in Gaza began when Hamas stormed into southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and kidnapping about 240 others. More than 100 people were released during a week-long truce in November in exchange for 240 Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli jails.
The Israeli offensive in Gaza has killed more than 26,700 people, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The ministry says about two-thirds of the dead are women and children.
Tuesday’s strike on a residential building in the central city of Deir al-Balah killed 11 people, including four children, Associated Press reporters who saw the bodies in a hospital said.
The war has razed vast swathes of the tiny coastal enclave to the ground, displacing 85 per cent of its population and starving a quarter of residents.
