The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) completed an operation to clear a hospital in Jabaliya in northern Gaza of terrorists, the Israeli military said on October 28. The IDF stated it had conducted a “precise operation” after receiving information that “terrorists had embedded themselves inside the Kamal Adwan Hospital.”
The raid was part of a larger multi-week operation in Jabaliya that has been the focus of the IDF’s 162nd Division. The raid has been slow going in comparison to some of the other raids Israeli forces conducted in Gaza over the last six months. Jabaliya has already been an IDF target twice in the past year, once early in the war and again in May. However, many civilians remained in the sprawling neighborhood, which includes the hospital and a refugee camp established in 1948 that grew into a dense urban area.
Hamas members have holed up in the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the past. Around 70 alleged terrorists were detained in December 2023 during the first battle in this area. Hamas has also used other hospitals in Gaza, including the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City and the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. The IDF has faced hurdles in Jabaliya because of the slow process of getting civilians to leave areas where there is fighting.
“Before beginning scans in the compound, the soldiers enabled civilians to leave the hospital,” the IDF said on October 28 in a statement about the raid. In addition, the Israeli military said it coordinated to provide a generator to supply additional electricity and oxygen for patients.
At the conclusion of the raid, 100 suspected terrorists were detained, including those “who attempted to escape during the evacuation of civilians.” Inside the hospital, weapons were found, as well as documents and funds the IDF alleged were used for terrorist purposes. A photo distributed by the IDF showed three AK-type rifles, one pistol, and several rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs). Other photos and videos distributed by the IDF showed operations in the Jabaliya area. The material illustrates close-quarters fighting in narrow alleyways and a dense urban environment.
The IDF said it had carried out other raids in Jabaliya and eliminated “dozens of terrorists” from October 26 to 28, while accusing Hamas of “deliberate attempts to prevent civilians from moving away from combat zones.” The IDF said on October 27 that it had eliminated 40 terrorists in a day of fighting. It was unclear if this figure was part of the “dozens” mentioned on October 28. “During the operational activity, the troops dismantled terrorist infrastructure and located large quantities of military equipment,” the Israeli military said.
The battles in Jabaliya, which appear to be winding down, come as IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi took part in a memorial ceremony after just over a year of operations in what Israel has dubbed the “Swords of Iron War.” The ground operation in Gaza began on October 27, 2023. “Soldiers and commanders of the IDF, on active duty and reservists, civilian employees: In the midst of a long war, we gather as a mournful and pained nation, pausing in order to remember,” Halevi said.
A total of 769 IDF soldiers have been killed in the war, including around 30 during the ground operation in Lebanon that began on October 1. Around 600 Israeli soldiers were killed in the first six months of the war, of whom roughly 260 died in the first six months of the ground operation in Gaza. These figures illustrate that the conflict in Gaza, with the exception of some of the fighting in Rafah, has been less intense in the last six months, but the IDF continues to experience losses every several days.
