Israeli troops pull out of Gaza hospital after two-week raid

They leave behind trail of destruction and bodies in wake of intense air strikes, shelling

GAZA STRIP (Palestinian Territories) Israeli soldiers pulled out of the Gaza Strip's largest hospital complex on April 1 after an intensive two-week military operation, leaving behind charred buildings and bodies strewn at the sprawling complex.

Israel said it battled Palestinian militants from Hamas hiding inside Gaza City's Al-Shifa hospital, killed at least 200 of them and recovered large stockpiles of weapons, explosives and cash.

The health ministry in Hamasruled Gaza said that, after heavy Israeli air strikes and tank fire, "the scale of the destruction inside the complex and the buildings around it is very large".

"Dozens of bodies, some of them decomposed, have been recovered from in and around the Al-Shifa medical complex," the ministry said, adding that the hospital was now "completely out of service".

A doctor said more than 20 bodies had been recovered, and that some were crushed by withdrawing vehicles.

Battles have also flared around other Gaza hospitals almost six months into the war sparked by Hamas' Oct 7 attack that have destroyed swathes of the besieged coastal territory.

The Hamas government press office said the army blew up more than 20 houses within 24 hours in the main southern city of Khan Younis, where battles have raged around the Nasser and Al-Amal hospitals.

American, Qatari and Egyptian mediators have long pushed for a ceasefire and hostage release deal, but Hamas official Osama Hamdan said "there is no talk so far about any new round of negotiations".