Israeli forces have detained more than 240 Palestinians including dozens of medical staff and the director of a north Gaza hospital they raided yesterday, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza and Israel's military.
The health ministry said it was concerned about the well-being of Hussam Abu Safiya, director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital, as some staff freed by the Israeli military last night said he was beaten up by soldiers.
The Israeli military said the hospital was being used as a command centre for Hamas military operations and those arrested were suspected militants.
It said Dr Safiya was taken for questioning as he was suspected of being a Hamas operative.
Yesterday, Hamas dismissed as lies Israel's assertion that its fighters had operated from the hospital throughout the 15-month-old Gaza war, saying no fighters were in the hospital.
The group had not yet commented on the 240 arrests.
The World Health Organization said that the Kamal Adwan Hospital was "now empty" following the raid, which put north Gaza's last major health facility out of service.
The WHO said it was "appalled" by yesterday's raid, saying "hospitals have once again become battlegrounds", and describing the lifeline of healthcare in north Gaza as reaching "breaking point".
"The systematic dismantling of the health system and a siege for over 80 days on north Gaza puts the lives of the 75,000 Palestinians remaining in the area at risk," the UN health agency said in a statement.
The remaining 15 critical patients, 50 caregivers and 20 health workers were yesterday transferred to Indonesian Hospital, which it described as "destroyed and non-functional".
It said: "The movement and treatment of these critical patients under such conditions pose grave risks to their survival.
"WHO is deeply concerned for their wellbeing, as well as for the Kamal Adwan Hospital director who has been reportedly detained during the raid. WHO lost contact with him since the raid began."
The WHO said initial reports indicated that some areas of the hospital were burnt and severely damaged during the raid, including the laboratory, surgical unit, engineering and maintenance department, operations theatre and the medical store.
The WHO also reiterated its call for a ceasefire.
Since 6 October, Israel has intensified its land and air offensive in northern Gaza, stating its goal is to prevent Hamas militants from regrouping, and said yesterday that it was acting on intelligence regarding "terrorist infrastructure and operatives" in the hospital's vicinity.
Before initiating the latest operation near the hospital, the military said its troops had "facilitated the secure evacuation of civilians, patients, and medical personnel".
Hamas urged the United Nations to set up an investigation committee "to examine the scale of crime being committed in northern Gaza".
