Qatar calls for int'l probe into Israeli raids on Gaza hospitals

Qatar on Wednesday urged an international investigation into Israeli raids on medical facilities in the Gaza Strip, denouncing as a "war crime" Israel's latest operation inside Al-Shifa hospital targeting Hamas.

The Qatari foreign ministry in a statement called for "an urgent international investigation" including by the United Nations to look into "the targeting of hospitals by the Israeli occupation army".

Israeli forces raided and then combed through Al-Shifa, Gaza's largest hospital, before withdrawing and redeploying around its outskirts, a journalist trapped inside the facility told AFP.

Israel accuses Palestinian militants of using the compound for military purposes, which Hamas has denied.

Doha deemed the Israeli raid "a war crime and a blatant violation of international laws".

The Gulf nation, which has been leading mediation efforts towards a ceasefire and release of hostages, called on the "international community to take swift and decisive measures to hold Israel accountable, acting as a deterrent against further crimes targeting civilians".

Qatari mediation efforts have so far led to the release of four out of around 240 hostages Israeli officials estimate were seized by Hamas militants in their attacks on October 7.

Some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the attacks, Israeli officials say.

In response Israel launched a relentless bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza, killing 11,500 people, mostly civilians, according to officials in the Hamas-run government.

Qatar is home to the political office of Hamas and is the main residence of the group's self-exiled leader, Ismail Haniyeh.

/KN/