A Hamas command center that the Israeli military says is under Al-Rantisi children’s hospital offers a chilling glimpse into what Gaza will continue to look like if the growing global calls for a ceasefire are heeded.
Inside hidden rooms, Hamas reportedly stored rocket-propelled grenades, an explosive vest and even a motorcycle believed to be used to kidnap Israelis on October 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Diapers and baby bottles found there suggest Hamas imprisoned its youngest hostages at the site, the IDF says.
Hamas also has a command node under Al-Shifa hospital, Gaza’s largest hospital, says a US official with knowledge of American intelligence.
The secret tunnels and command center that Israeli forces point to are part of an elaborate terror infrastructure that Hamas has spent 15 years constructing in the heart of Gaza. If that infrastructure is not fully destroyed, Hamas, which remains intent on destroying Israel, will retain the means to continue attacking Israeli civilians while hiding behind Palestinian civilians.
Accepting a ceasefire now will cost many more lives in the long run.
Read more in this Nov. 17, 2023 CNN op-ed by Aviva Klompas, former director of speechwriting at the Israeli Mission to the United Nations and co-founder of Boundless Israel, a nonprofit organization that partners with community leaders in the United States to support Israel education and combat hatred of Jews. It includes a video where Israel shows CNN an underground tunnel between a school and hospital in Gaza.
View