IDF forces overnight Sunday left Shifa Hospital in Gaza City in northern Gaza following a successful operation in the compound.

The IDF raided the hospital at the beginning of the war, arresting terrorists and blowing up terror tunnels under the compound. However, after IDF forces left the area and the war shifted to the southern Gaza Strip, terrorists began returning to the hospital in droves, including senior terrorists. They hid in the maternity! ward, emergency room, and burn department in an attempt to use the most vulnerable patients as human shields.

Two weeks ago, in a dramatic night operation, IDF forces surprised the terrorists holing up in the hospital, killing and arresting dozens of terrorists. As the operation continued, IDF troops evacuated 6,000 civilians from the area and eliminated and arrested about 700 terrorists, including senior Hamas and Islamic Jihad commanders. No civilians were harmed in the operation.

Following the IDF’s withdrawal, Gazans streamed to the area and discovered the extent of the destruction there along with hundreds of bodies of terrorists.

Army Radio quoted a military source on Monday morning who said: “Shifa Hospital will no longer serve as a hospital. It was severely damaged after it turned into a battlefield. Hamas destroyed the hospital when it decided to turn it into a command center.”

The video and photos below show the site of the “hospital” following the IDF’s withdrawal:

Before and after photos:

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)