The Israeli military has withdrawn from Gaza’s main hospital after a two-week raid, saying it had killed some 200 militants and detained hundreds while returning Palestinians described a vast swath of destruction.
Hundreds of people returned to Shifa Hospital and the surrounding area after the withdrawal early Monday, where they found bodies inside and outside of the facility.
Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the top military spokesman, said Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad group had established their main northern headquarters inside the hospital. He described days of close-quarters fighting and blamed Hamas for the destruction, saying some fighters had barricaded themselves inside hospital wards while others launched mortar rounds at the compound.
Israel’s war in Gaza has killed at least 32,845 Palestinians, according to the the territory’s Health Ministry. The ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its tally, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.
The war has displaced most the territory’s population and driven a third of its residents to the brink of famine. Northern Gaza, where Shifa is located, has suffered vast destruction and has been largely isolated since October.
Currently:
— Palestinians say Israeli troops have withdrawn from Gaza’s main hospital after 2-week raid
— Israelis stage largest protest since war began to increase pressure on Netanyahu
— US military says it destroyed Houthi drones over the Red Sea and in Yemen
— Pope overcomes health concerns to preside over Easter Mass and appeal for peace in Gaza and Ukraine
— Find more AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here’s the latest:
NICOSIA, Cyprus — Cyprus Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos says ships carrying hundreds of tons of humanitarian aid have approached Gaza.
Kombos told The Associated Press on Monday that the three ships have been granted permission to start offloading cargo.
U.S. charity World Central Kitchen says the ships carry enough ready-to-eat items including rice, pasta, flour, canned vegetables and proteins. to prepare more than 1 million meals.
A special shipment of dates from the United Arab Emirates is also part of the aid. Dates are traditionally eaten to break the daily fast during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.
Earlier this month, the Open Arms ship inaugurated the direct sea route to the Palestinian territory after delivering 200 tons of food, water and other aid.
TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military says a “suspicious aerial target” struck a military base in the southern city of Eilat, causing light damage to a building.
The military did not disclose what hit the base but said there were no injuries and that its air defenses did not intercept the object.
An umbrella group of Iran-backed Iraqi militias claimed responsibility. The group, dubbed the Islamic Resistance of Iraq, did not give additional details.
The Israeli military said sirens went off early Monday in Eilat after the “suspicious aerial target” came from the east, and fell in the Gulf of Eilat.
Since the war against Hamas broke out on Oct. 7, Israel has faced attacks from militant groups who say they are supporting the Palestinian cause from as far away as Yemen and Iraq. Most drones and missiles have been shot down but occasionally they manage to strike.
TEL AVIV, Israel — An Israeli Supreme Court decision on the divisive issue of military draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jews has gone into effect.
The court decided last week to freeze funding to Jewish seminaries whose students have not turned up to be drafted into the military. Monday was also the last day for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to submit a bill that would address the mass draft exemptions granted to the ultra-Orthodox, which it was not expected to do on time.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews in Israel enjoy a system of broad exemptions to Israel’s compulsory military service and the issue has long divided the nation. Secular Israelis say the ultra-Orthodox should share in the burden of protecting the country, a demand that has sharpened during the war against Hamas in Gaza. The ultra-Orthodox, meanwhile, say drafting them into the military would compromise their pious way of life. They say they share the burden of service by praying and being observant Jews.
The Supreme Court ruled that the current system of conscription exemptions is discriminatory.
But the ruling’s coming into force isn’t expected to spark too much immediate drama.
The Education Ministry is expected to stop the monthly subsidies to the seminaries on Monday, although the government could search for discretionary funds to cover the gaps. The ultra-Orthodox weren’t expected to be drafted en masse without a formal plan by the government.
The issue poses a threat to Netanyahu’s government, which hinges on two ultra-Orthodox parties for its stability. The ultra-Orthodox parties have not said what they will do if they lose their preferential status. But if they decide to leave the government, the coalition would almost certainly collapse and the country could be forced into new elections, with Netanyahu trailing significantly in the polls amid the war.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli police say they have arrested a relative of a senior Hamas leader in a raid on her home in the country’s south.
Police did not say who was arrested, but Israeli media said it was the sister of Hamas’ supreme leader Ismail Haniyeh, who is known to have at least one sister living in Israel.
In a statement Monday, police said the relative was suspected of contacts with Hamas members, identification with a terror group and support for terror acts.
Police said they found evidence at her residence, including documents and mobile phones. Photos shared by police from the early morning raid showed masked officers in tactical gear.
The arrest took place as Israel is holding negotiations mediated by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar to try to release dozens of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a cease-fire in the nearly six-month-old war.
Ismail Haniyeh lives in exile in Qatar.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office says that the Israeli leader has undergone a successful hernia surgery.
In a message early Monday shortly after the surgery, Netanyahu’s office said he was conscious, feeling well and recovering. Netanyahu’s office had said the hernia was discovered during a routine checkup, and that the prime minister would be under full anesthesia and unconscious for the procedure.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin, a close confidant who also holds the title of deputy prime minister, served as acting prime minister during the operation, the office said.
Netanyahu, 74, has kept a full schedule throughout Israel’s nearly six-month-long war against Hamas, and his doctors have said he is in good health.
Last year, doctors acknowledged he had concealed a long-known heart problem after they implanted a pacemaker.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian residents say the Israeli military has withdrawn from Gaza’s main hospital after a two-week raid, leaving behind a vast swath of destruction.
Hundreds of people returned to Shifa Hospital and the surrounding area after the withdrawal early Monday, where they found bodies inside and outside of the facility.
The military has described the raid as one of the most successful operations of the nearly six-month war, saying it killed scores of Hamas and other militants, as well as seizing valuable intelligence.
Mohammed Mahdi, who was among those who returned, described a scene of “total destruction.” He said several buildings had been burned down. He counted six bodies in the area, including two in the hospital courtyard.
Another resident, Yahia Abu Auf, said there were still patients, medical workers and displaced people sheltering inside the medical compound. He said several patients had been taken to the nearby Ahli Hospital. He said army bulldozers had plowed over a makeshift cemetery inside the hospital compound.
JERUSALEM — Tens of thousands of Israelis thronged central Jerusalem on Sunday in the largest anti-government protest since the country went to war in October. Protesters urged the government to reach a cease-fire deal to free dozens of hostages held in Gaza by Hamas militants and to hold early elections.
Israeli society was broadly united immediately after Oct. 7, when Hamas killed some 1,200 people during a cross-border attack and took 250 others hostage. Nearly six months of conflict have renewed divisions over the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, though the country remains largely in favor of the war.
Netanyahu has vowed to destroy Hamas and bring all the hostages home, yet those goals have been elusive. While Hamas has suffered heavy losses, it remains intact.
Roughly half the hostages in Gaza were released during a weeklong cease-fire in November. But attempts by international mediators to bring home the remaining hostages have failed. Talks resumed on Sunday with no signs that a breakthrough was imminent.
Hostages’ families believe time is running out, and they are getting more vocal about their displeasure with Netanyahu.
“We believe that no hostages will come back with this government because they’re busy putting sticks in the wheels of negotiations for the hostages,” said Boaz Atzili, whose cousin, Aviv Atzili and his wife, Liat, were kidnapped on Oct. 7. Liat was released but Aviv was killed, and his body is in Gaza. “Netanyahu is only working in his private interests.”