Press Briefing by IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari November 15th, 20:15

Good evening,

IDF troops are deepening the ground operation in the northern Gaza Strip. At this stage, the forces are thoroughly searching the area, looking for weapons, terror tunnel openings and booby traps.

IDF troops continue to operate at this hour in a concerted manner in the area of the Shifa hospital. We began this operation last night. Shifa hospital is a place which we knew, based on intelligence, housed terror infrastructure. Since then, we are deepening the operation. In the hospital, we found weapons, intelligence material, military technological assets and military equipment. We also discovered an operational command center with communications equipment and military technological assets belonging to Hamas, which were sent to our intelligence agencies for full analysis. The troops continue to search the hospital in a precise, intelligence-based, manner. We will continue to do so, in order to gather further information, to discover additional assets, and to expose the terror activities within the hospital.

Over the last few days, we’ve been in contact multiple times with the various hospital staff to facilitate evacuation of patients and those taking shelter at the hospital, who Hamas tried to use human shields. We found uniforms of Hamas terrorists which were thrown on the hospital floor, to allow those terrorists to escape, likely disguised as civilians.

We warned the hospital management in advance, before our operation. Today, we also delivered to the hospital medical equipment and baby food.

The Shifa hospital, the Rantisi hospital – these and other hospitals were used by Hamas for terror. These discoveries we made at Shifa, as well as at the Rantisi hospital, prove unequivocally that military use was made of the hospitals for terror purposes, in complete contravention to international law. We will continue to expose this to the world, and to expose the way in which Hamas-ISIS carried out terror activity under the cover of hospitals.

In the north, we continue to maintain a high state of preparedness on offense and defense. Today, we targeted Hezbollah terror infrastructure, and returned fire to every source of fire.

On the homefront, continue to follow the Home Front Command instructions as they are updated; they save lives. I would like to update that further to the government’s decision, we launched a fund to support IDF soldiers called up for emergency reserve duty. I encourage reservists and their families to apply for assistance. Instructions for applying can be found on the website. This is one way to express our gratitude for the reservists who left their families, studies and work, and showed up to defend their country. To us, you are a shining light of hope and courage, and we express our appreciation in a modest way through this fund and the assistance. Together we will win.
To date, we notified the families of 368 IDF fallen soldiers, who died defending Israel. We also notified the families of 239 hostages. We operate around the clock, with various means, both overt and covert, to bring the hostages back home. This is a top national priority. We have not and will not miss any opportunity to bring them home. It is important that the families watching us this evening know this: you, and your loved ones, are top of mind, always.

Questions?
Did the delay in entering the Shifa hospital cause us not to find information regarding the hostages? Where are the Hamas terrorists that were claimed to have been hiding in the Shifa hospital?

We began the Shifa hospital operation at the time that was right for us – operationally, intelligence-wise, and for the safety of our troops. There were also the steps we took vis a vis the hospital staff, while evacuating a large number of civilians from the hospital. There were many more people present in the hospital than there are now. This would have endangered both our troops and civilians, and would provide Hamas with the achievement they’re after. What did Hamas want to achieve? It wanted images of the IDF harming civilians and patients in a hospital.

We are carrying out a precise, quality operation. Our troops have trained, special units are operating inside the hospital after detailed preparation, based on intelligence. This is how we operate. This, in contrast to Hamas’s attempt to succeed in delegitimizing the State of Israel.

This operation requires time, it’s a complicated area. There are still many civilians, patients, medical staff and those taking shelter at the hospital. We also must conduct this at the right pace, to conduct this optimally from an operational and intelligence-based standpoint, and take as long as is required in accordance with our objectives.

There’s no doubt, based on these findings alone, that Hamas directed this terrorist infrastructure. We shouldn’t be distracted by a terrorist or two who took off their uniform, disguised themselves within the patients and escaped. After October 7th, this place was the hideout for some 200 Hamas terrorists, murderous terrorists who participated in the horrific massacre – they escaped to the hospital.

We have come today to Shifa hospital, which is seen as a symbol, and Hamas leadership considers it a symbol. Not one of them imagined we would enter Shifa hospital, and we will continue to enter any place where Hamas terrorists are present and will hunt them down.