Security Council Debates Israeli Attacks on Hospitals Allegedly Misused by Hamas, as UN Rights Chief Urges Independent Probes
Following Israel’s 27 December attack on the last functioning hospital in north Gaza, the Security Council today heard calls for urgent international action to protect civilians and ensure accountability, including independent investigations into these incidents and the alleged misuse of medical facilities by Hamas.
“A human-rights catastrophe continues to unfold in Gaza before the eyes of the world,” said Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Citing a recent report by his Office, he pointed to a pattern of attacks on hospitals between 7 October 2023 and 30 June 2024 that begin with Israeli airstrikes and are followed by ground raids and the detention of patients and staff — “leaving the hospital essentially non-functional”. Meanwhile, Hamas and other armed groups continue to reportedly operate behind civilian infrastructure, including health facilities, exposing them to attacks.
Israel’s recent attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital — the last functioning hospital in north Gaza — “reflects the patterns of attacks documented in the report”, he said, stating that Israeli military operations in and around hospitals across Gaza “have had a terrible impact, precisely at a time of massive demands on healthcare due to the ongoing conflict”. Underscoring that military operations must always distinguish between military targets and civilians, he observed: “The use of heavy weapons against hospitals is difficult to reconcile with that principle.”
While noting that Israel has alleged that hospitals were being improperly used for military purposes, he stated that Israel “has not provided sufficient information to substantiate many of these claims”. Against that backdrop, he called for independent, thorough and transparent investigations into all Israeli attacks on hospitals, healthcare infrastructure and medical personnel, as well as the alleged misuse of such facilities.
“Hospitals have become battlegrounds in Gaza,” added Rik Peeperkorn, World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the West Bank and Gaza, noting that the Strip’s health sector is being “systematically dismantled and pushed to the breaking point”. Only 16 of 36 hospitals in Gaza remain partially functional, and most hospitals lack the capacity to treat chronic diseases and complex injuries. Further, the pace of medical evacuations remains extremely slow, while the entry of supplies into and across Gaza is hampered by restrictions and delays. “To date, WHO has verified 654 attacks on healthcare facilities in Gaza,” he added.
In north Gaza, only Al-Awda Hospital remains minimally functional following the recent attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital, he noted. However, recent reports indicate that this facility, too, has been ordered to evacuate. With this, he said, “the last health line in north Gaza is at a risk of being severed”. Yet, “the health system of Gaza has not collapsed”, he said, pointing to the restoration of Al-Shifa Hospital and Nasser Medical Complex. Urging that hospitals in north Gaza become functional again, he also called for expedited medical evacuations, sustained access to hospitals, increased flow of aid and an urgent ceasefire.
Tanya Haj Hassan, Medical Practitioner at Medical Aid for Palestinians, then shared the perspectives of healthcare workers in Gaza “who have been sending SOS messages to this Council for over a year”. “They tell us that they are targets because they’re healthcare workers — that wearing scrubs and white coats is like wearing a target on their backs,” she added. “I never thought that international law or human-rights institutions would allow 2 million people to be locked in a cage and systematically massacred,” she stressed.
“I speak to you today in disbelief that all of our repeated, firsthand and utterly damning testimonies have still not moved the world to meaningful action,” she continued. Some 96 per cent of Gaza’s children believe their death is imminent, while many wish for their own death. Just in the past week, seven infants have died from hypothermia, “meaning they literally froze to their death”, she said, adding: “I shudder to even estimate the number of children who’ve lost their parents and have been orphaned for life.”
The Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine urged everyone to decide whether they stand by hope and humanity, as embodied by the white coat worn by doctors around the world or stand with destruction and death. He recalled Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who had refused to leave Kamal Adwan Hospital and his patients a few weeks before the ultimate attack on the facility, as saying: “so the army punished me by killing my son. I saw him die at the entrance gate.” The detained doctor’s plight is only one of an infinite number of stories of unimaginable loss and trauma, courage and resilience from Gaza, the speaker added, calling for his immediate release. Palestinian doctors and medical personnel took their mission to heart at the peril of their lives. “They did not abandon the victims; do not abandon them,” he said, pleading: “End the genocide”.
The representative of Israel underscored that hospitals are meant to be sanctuaries of care and compassion. Yet, Hamas has transformed them into tools for terror, exploiting their sanctity to shield its murderous aims and wage war against civilians. “This is a deliberate and systematic strategy, a cornerstone of Hamas’ operational doctrine, their modus operandi,” he stated. Kamal Adwan Hospital has become the latest site exploited by Hamas, which used it to protect its terrorists, store its weapons and launch its attacks. “This week’s precise operation by IDF [Israel Defense Forces] revealed the extent of Hamas’ abuse of the facility” — over 240 terrorists were apprehended, including 15 who participated in the 7 October massacres, he said, adding that — prior to its operations — Israel facilitated the evacuation of 350 patients and medical staff.
Many speakers condemned Israel’s ongoing attacks against hospitals and healthcare facilities in Gaza, while others pointed to Hamas’ exploitation of the civilian infrastructure.
The United Kingdom’s delegate urged Israel to clarify the whereabouts of medical staff detained from hospitals in north Gaza. While “Hamas clearly put Palestinian civilians and medical staff at risk” by embedding in civilian infrastructure, she stressed that the obligation to protect hospitals and healthcare workers is “unconditional”.
The representative of the United States said Hamas has repeatedly misused civilian infrastructure like schools and hospitals to store weapons, house fighters and coordinate attacks against Israel, putting civilians in harm’s way. She added: “Israel’s fight is with Hamas and not with Palestinian civilians.” However, even as it battles Hamas, Israel has a moral imperative to prevent civilian casualties, she stressed.
Egypt’s delegate, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group, underscored that there is no evidence supporting Israel’s claims that hospitals in Gaza are being used for other purposes. He called on the Council to compel that country — through all political and legal means — to implement its resolutions as well as the provisional measures of the International Court of Justice.
“We have every reason to believe that Israeli troops, who are bent on inflicting collective punishment on Gazans, have been systematically and deliberately destroying the health system of the Strip”, said the representative of the Russian Federation. Israel relies on the unconditional support of the United States as it cleanses Gaza of Palestinians and creates conditions unfit for human survival. Washington, D.C., continues to provide “political cover” for Israel and block any relevant initiatives from the Security Council.
Citing the systematic destruction of the healthcare system as “one of the key pillars” of Israel’s policy of ethnic cleansing, Algeria’s representative said that the assault on Kamal Adwan Hospital – “terrorizing patients and medical staff” – was not driven by military necessity but rather a deliberate effort to deprive northern Gaza of essential health service.
The deliberate targeting of hospitals, medical personnel, patients and the wounded defies every principle of humanitarian law, observed Pakistan’s delegate, adding that the scale of Israel’s genocidal campaign is staggering. “Its intent [is] unmistakable,” he said. This is not a war. It is a campaign of dispossession, ethnic cleansing and annihilation, he said, stating: “Silence is complicity.”
In the same vein, the representative of Somalia stated that deliberate attacks against healthcare facilities and personnel “are a form of ethnic cleansing and collective punishment against the civilian population in Gaza”. Guyana’s delegate also stressed that “the ongoing attacks on the healthcare infrastructure in Gaza, including medical personnel, is part of a systematic plan against the Palestinian people”.
The representatives of France, Denmark, Sierra Leone and Slovenia voiced concern over the situation of healthcare personnel in Gaza, with the latter highlighting Israel's legal responsibility as the occupying Power to ensure the provision of medical services in the Strip. Stressing the crucial role of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Greece’s delegate added that crossings should be open for aid delivery, and sanctuaries should be protected and not turned into death traps for those who were forced to flee.
China’s representative called on Israel to “stop turning hospitals into battlefields”. He went on to say that differences in negotiations should be bridged by political will, not innocent lives. Winning the war does not necessarily mean owning peace, and resorting only to military strength does not guarantee lasting security, he stressed.
It is troubling that Israel has repeatedly attacked Kamal Adwan Hospital, the representative of the Republic of Korea said, adding: “On December 27, the burning of the facility began when patients were still inside.” Despite Israel's argument that its defense forces made extensive efforts to enable treatment for patients, “the entire world has witnessed the contrary, through harrowing media reports and viral images,” he said.