The IDF has released special footage from the Rantisi hospital in Gaza, showing signs that some of the hostages abducted on October 7 were held there.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari explains in the footage that a room was found on the basement level of the hospital with concrete signs indicating hostages were held there, along with underground headquarters and a room full of weapons.
This is the first time photographic evidence has been revealed from the operations of Flotilla 13 special forces and the 401st Brigade Combat Team in the Rantisi hospital.
During the operations, IDF troops found many weapons in the basement of the hospital, including explosive belts, grenades, weapons and RPG missiles — in short, preparations for a major battle.
In addition, Israeli fighters discovered on the same floor a motorcycle with gunshot marks that was used by Hamas terrorists in the October 7 massacre.
Concrete signs indicating that hostages were held in the room were found on the same basement-level floor.
The fighters found a woman’s garment left on the seat of chair, with a rope connected to its leg, a dirty and dusty package of diapers on the floor, and a pink baby bottle left on top of a metal control box bearing the logo of the World Health Organization.
What appears to be a purple child’s plastic watch is lying alongside the empty baby bottle.
In addition, the fighters discovered a schedule for guard duty, written in Arabic, on the wall of a room with “living room” furniture and a wall covered by an elegant curtain which Hagari said was likely to have been intended for video clip production purposes.
From the hospital, IDF troops also uncovered an operational tunnel shaft, which leads to the area around the home of a senior Hamas naval commander.
“Tonight, the world got to see what we have known for years,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement following the release of the footage.
“The Hamas terrorist organization has cynically built a terror base underneath the Rantisi hospital in Gaza, just as it does in additional hospitals and civilian institutions.
“IDF troops revealed a Hamas command center underneath the hospital. Instead of finding medical equipment, they found ammunition, explosives, and clear signs that Israeli hostages had been held there – including babies.
“We will continue operating against Hamas – the ISIS of Gaza – and we will ensure that no terror base will be left untouched across Gaza,” Gallant pledged.
“Any civilians located near such terror hotspots may be in danger and we call on them to evacuate to the safe zone in the southern region of Gaza.”
