Since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly spoken of the need to topple Hamas but has done little to address the power vacuum that would leave — especially after Israeli forces withdraw.
That is already apparent in Gaza City, where a deadly battle at the territory’s largest hospital complex stretched into a third day Wednesday, after the Israeli military said the reemergence of Hamas fighters had forced it to return to a site it first stormed in November.
The military said Wednesday that it had killed dozens of militants in the operation at Shifa Hospital and questioned or arrested hundreds of people, while Hamas has said that it caused "deaths and injuries” to Israeli forces; neither account could be independently confirmed. The crossfire has endangered displaced people seeking shelter on the grounds, along with medical teams, patients and nearby residents.