Rocket launcher fired at Israeli forces from Gaza hospital, IDF claims

The Israeli military has claimed its troops were fired on with rocket launchers from the entrance of the Al Quds hospital in Gaza City. Video posted by the IDF, which could not be independently verified, showed what officials said was a Hamas terrorist carrying the weapon into the compound entrance. The Al Quds hospital is the second largest in Gaza City, but was forced to cease operations on Sunday when it ran out of fuel. The Palestinian Red Crescent said on Monday that it had tried to evacuate people but could not get near the hospital due to the intensity of bombardment. Late last week, the Red Cross said that there were 500 patients and 14,000 displaced people inside. The IDF said it had been engaged in fighting around the hospital with “a terrorist squad” with two rocket propelled grenade launchers that had “embedded itself within a group of civilians”. It said that a tank was damaged in the exchange and that some Hamas terrorists managed to return to the hospital. “During the incident, approximately 21 terrorists were killed and there were no casualties to our forces,” the IDF said in a statement. It did not mention whether civilians were killed in the fight. Subscribe to The Telegraph with our special offer: just £1 for 3 months. Start your free trial now: Get the latest headlines: and are websites of The Telegraph, the UK’s best-selling quality daily newspaper providing news and analysis on UK and world events, business, sport, lifestyle and culture.