The United Nations is facing scrutiny for underreporting the use of Gaza hospitals by Hamas for military purposes. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have intensified their operations in northern Gaza to target Hamas, which has since increased tensions between the IDF and the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health.

On November 3, the IDF’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) reported that Hamas detonated an explosive device near Kamal Adwan Hospital during an evacuation effort. While the convoy remained unscathed, six hospitalized children were injured. However, Hamas’ Gaza Ministry of Health failed to mention the explosion, later accusing the IDF of bombing the hospital on November 4 and attempting to execute medical staff who refused to evacuate.

The IDF denied targeting the hospital, stating that a precise strike had been conducted against a terrorist location 100 meters away. Previous IDF operations at Kamal Adwan Hospital uncovered weapons, intelligence documents, and disguised terrorists, the IDF reported. COGAT emphasized that Hamas routinely uses medical facilities for military purposes, housing operatives, interrogating captives, and storing weapons within hospital compounds.

Hamas’ misuse of Kamal Adwan Hospital has been corroborated by testimony from Ahmad Kahlot, a former hospital director and senior Hamas member, who admitted it served as a haven for high-ranking terrorists. Interrogations of Gaza-based ambulance drivers have also revealed that Hamas uses ambulances for transporting militants rather than civilians.

International scrutiny over these allegations has varied. The United Nations’ Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory confirmed tunnels under Al-Shifa Hospital but refrained from verifying their military purpose. Critics, such as Anne Bayefsky of Human Rights Voices, accused the commission of ignoring clear evidence, including video and photographic documentation of Hamas’ activities in hospitals.

Legal experts argue that hospitals lose their protected status under international law if used to provide a military advantage. Dr. Tal Mimran of Hebrew University’s Faculty of Law noted that the presence of tunnels or weapons justifies IDF entry, provided harm to the hospital’s civilian functions is minimized.