Israeli forces battle militants around another Gaza hospital as babies evacuated to Egypt

Israeli forces battle Hamas around hospital in northern Gaza, raising fears of another painful standoff and evacuation of a medical facility. World Health Organization evacuated 31 premature babies from Shifa Hospital;

Israeli forces pressed their offensive against Hamas in northern Gaza on November 20, battling militants around a hospital where thousands of patients and displaced people have been sheltering for weeks, raising Palestinian fears of another painful standoff and evacuation of a medical facility.

A shell struck the second floor of the Indonesian Hospital, killing at least 12 people, according to a medical worker inside the facility and the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. Both blamed Israeli forces. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

The advance came a day after the World Health Organization evacuated 31 premature babies from Shifa Hospital. At least 28 were transported to Egypt on November 20. More than 250 critically ill or wounded patients remain stranded at the compound that Israeli forces stormed days ago.

The plight of Gaza's hospitals is the focus of a battle of narratives over the war's brutal toll on Palestinian civilians, thousands of whom have been killed or buried in rubble since the conflict was sparked by Hamas' October 7 rampage into southern Israel. In the wake of the assault, Israeli leaders vowed to eradicate Hamas, destroy its ability to rule Gaza and uproot its militant infrastructure.

Israel says Hamas uses civilians as human shields and operated a major command hub inside and beneath Shifa. Critics say Israel's siege and relentless aerial bombardment amount to collective punishment of the territory's 2.3 million Palestinians.

Marwan Abdallah, the medical worker at the Indonesian Hospital, said Israeli tanks were operating less than 200 meters (yards) from the hospital, and that Israeli snipers could be seen on the roofs of nearby buildings. As he spoke over the phone, the sound of gunfire could be heard in the background.

Mr. Abdallah said the hospital had received dozens of dead and wounded in airstrikes and shelling overnight.