IDF and Shin Bet: Hamas Operates Interrogation and Torture Centers Inside Nasser Hospital

(Credit: IDF Spokesperson)

The IDF and Shin Bet revealed intelligence today (Thursday) indicating that the Hamas terror organization is using Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis for interrogations, torture, and government activity. In a joint statement, the two agencies said the activity takes place, among other locations, in buildings within the hospital complex, alongside its continued use for medical purposes.

According to the information released, one hub of activity is located in the "Yassin" building, on the second floor of the hospital's outpatient clinics. There, it is claimed, interrogations are conducted by Hamas internal security and military intelligence personnel. In addition, the organization uses the hospital to collect money and operates some of its governing mechanisms from there.

The IDF and Shin Bet say the use of the complex comes amid declining support for Hamas among Gaza Strip residents and the organization's concern that it is losing its grip on the population. According to the statement, Hamas has therefore intensified the activity of its security apparatuses and is seeking to impose its rule through intimidation, interrogations, and torture.

The released information further indicates that Hamas operatives are regularly present in different areas of the hospital, with some moving around masked. Patients and medical staff are exposed to their presence, which the IDF and Shin Bet say creates fear and harms both patients and the staff and service providers there.

Another interrogation hub, according to the statement, operates in a building whose use has changed over the years: it initially served as hospital offices, then as a cafeteria, and was later converted into a prayer room. Today, according to intelligence information, Hamas uses it as an interrogation center.

The IDF and Shin Bet said the findings indicate that Nasser Hospital continues to serve as "a central military infrastructure" for Hamas in southern Gaza, and that this is not an isolated case. The joint statement said: "The exploitation of civilian infrastructure for interrogations and torture is a widespread phenomenon within the Hamas terror organization. These actions by the Hamas terror organization constitute a violation of international law, which prohibits the military use of hospitals."

At the end of the statement, the IDF addressed Gaza Strip residents directly and warned about Hamas's use of civilian facilities: "The IDF warns Gaza Strip residents: The Hamas terror organization fears losing control of the Strip, and therefore uses hospitals, schools, and other civilian facilities for its own purposes, harming them in spaces intended to serve them."