Al-Shifa raid update: Israeli troops turn hospital into 'large prison'
The Israeli army assault on Gaza's al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical complex in the Palestinian territory, is continuing for the second day, as thousands of civilians remain besieged inside.
The hospital has been turned into a "large prison", the hospital's director, Dr Muhammad Abu Salmiya, said from inside al-Shifa on Thursday afternoon.
"The occupation soldiers roam freely inside the hospital and only want to kill, kill, then kill," Abu Salmiya told Al Jazeera Arabic.
"Even the jungle law doesn't allow the current inhumane conditions at al-Shifa. We are fighting death minute by minute."
In a phone interview with Al Jazeera 35 hours after troops broke into al-Shifa, Abu Salmiya gave the following updates:
Israeli tanks have encircled the hospital, while soldiers roam inside, including in the emergency room.
Soldiers have searched all departments, taken bodies of dead patients and blown water pipes.
Some displaced families are held by soldiers in storage rooms.
No fighting took place inside the hospital, and no bullets were fired at soldiers from within the complex.
Communications between doctors across different sections are cut.
Oxygen has completely run out.
The hospital has no food, water or electricity.
Doctors can no longer treat patients, who are at risk of dying at any moment.
Doctors have decided to stay with their patients until the end, dead or alive.