Israel shows tunnel shaft at Gaza hospital and says it will let in some fuel
In the darkness of Al-Shifa Hospital on Thursday evening, it was unclear where the shaft led and how deep it went, although the army said it had sent a drone down at least several meters. Inside, electrical wiring was visible, along with a metal staircase.
Colonel Tsury acknowledged the pressure on Israel to show evidence of Hamas activity at the hospital, but said it could take days before troops descended the shaft. He added that soldiers methodically searched the complex and had discovered weapons, explosives and computers.
Another military official said Israeli forces had captured and interrogated a Hamas operative in hospital, but gave no further details.
Israel has the support of the Biden administration in its claim that Hamas is operating under the Al-Shifa complex. Senior US officials said Friday they remained confident that Hamas and Palestinian militants have used hospitals as command centers and ammunition depots, based on intercepted communications between fighters operating in the area.
At the same time, the Biden administration has warned Israel not to carry out airstrikes on hospitals in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinians are still seeking refuge.
Under pressure from European allies and a UN Security Council resolution calling for more aid to civilians in Gaza, Israel agreed on Friday to allow two tankers of fuel to enter the Gaza Strip daily. The fuel will be used to operate desalination and sewage treatment plants, Israeli officials said.
The decision followed a request from the Biden administration and was described by Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi as a way to prevent the spread of disease among civilians and Israeli soldiers.
“We want to prevent the spread of epidemics,” Mr Hanegbi said. “We don’t need epidemics that will harm the civilians and our soldiers who are there. If there is disease, the fighting will stop. We will not be able to continue given the humanitarian crisis and international outrage.”
Until Friday, Israeli authorities had allowed virtually no additional fuel to enter Gaza since the October 7 attacks.
The United Nations World Food Program warned on Thursday that Gaza’s entire population – 2.2 million, half of them children – needed food aid and were at risk of starvation because of a collapsed food supply chain and insufficient aid.
“We are already starting to see cases of dehydration and malnutrition, which are increasing rapidly,” Abeer Etefa, a spokeswoman for the program, told reporters at the UN. “People are facing an immediate possibility of famine.”