Israeli forces are attacking Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza with tanks and heavy gunfire in a clear violation of international humanitarian law, the Palestinian Health Ministry said early Monday.
It said the army has surrounded the hospital and explosions could be heard accompanied by violent clashes between Israeli and Palestinian forces.
Warning that the attack aimed to cause the health system in the northern Gaza Strip to collapse, it said it holds Israeli forces responsible for the lives of the medical staff, patients and displaced people in the hospital.
"The Israeli army raiding the hospital with tanks, drones and guns and opening fire inside is a war crime that confirms Israel's intention to eliminate the health sector and destroy hospitals,” the Palestinian government in the Gaza Strip said on Telegram.
It added that the situation threatened the lives of thousands of people in the hospital and added to the black record of the Israeli army, which "still commits various crimes and massacres."
"We condemn in the strongest terms the army's raid on the medical complex and consider it a clear war crime, a violation of international law, a violation of international agreements and a crime against humanity," it added.
