Gaza doctors say Israel used them as 'human shields'

A doctor who worked at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza during the Israeli siege and bombardment of the complex described how Israeli troops used Palestinian doctors as “hostages” as they invaded the hospital.

Following weeks of intense bombardment of the hospital, the Israeli military approved an evacuation request for the staff and patients to the southern enclave, submitted in coordination with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations.

When a UN-led convoy of ambulances arrived at a checkpoint set up by Israeli forces on the road connecting the northern Gaza Strip to southern areas, they were stopped, searched, and interrogated for seven hours, before the head of al-Shifa medical complex, Dr Mohammed Abu Silmiya, was detained along with around five other doctors.

Marwan Abu Saada, a doctor who was interrogated with him, spoke to Middle East Eye about the "horrifying hours" when Israeli soldiers held them and used them as human shields inside the hospital.

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Gaza doctors seized by Israel say they were used as 'human shields'