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Day 2 – A Quiet Day – IsraelI Attack on Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2023-11-19
Day 3 (Friday, Nov. 17) of Israel’s attack on the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City was quieter than Day 2, and much quieter than Day 1. There was little major news. There was no new evidence of weapons, tunnels or headquarters. However, Israel found a 60 yard Hamas tunnel on Day 5 (Sunday). The author may have discerned the larger Israeli plan and how the Al-Shifa attack fits into this plan. A second deceased hostage was found nearby. Only one related event is included, the UN Security Council resolution. The text from the UN resolution and other relevant documents are given in an Appendix.
Please note that this diary is intended as a news report, and not an analysis or opinion piece. However, the section on Israel’s strategy & the hospital consists of the author’s analysis of the events and their meaning. A poll is at the end.
The Day 1 and Day 2 diaries are on the Daily Kos.
The Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City was attacked by Israel’s IDF Wednesday morning, November 15. The IDF stayed on the hospital grounds overnight and during the next two days. It’s unclear how many of the hospital buildings they entered, and if they stayed in any of them overnight. The hospital is continuing operations as best as they can under extremely difficult conditions.
The IDF continued to search for Hamas soldiers, weapons, tunnels, and underground facilities.
TUNNELS, WEAPONS and HEADQUARTERS (Command Center)
The IDF reported NO new tunnels, weapons and headquarters on Day 3. It is unclear if the IDF entered any of the underground structures in the past 3 days. On Day 5 (Sunday), the IDF found, and entered, a different shaft in the hospital grounds that connected to a Hamas style tunnel (not a utility tunnel). A soldier went into tunnel for 60 yards until it ended at a metal blast door. It is intended to report on this tunnel in a future diary.
Some more information on the tunnel entrance found on Day 2 was provided, and shown in the picture below.
The round, vertical structure was broken open. It is a pipe and contains several wires or ropes that are tied in a loop. Exactly what these are and their purpose isn’t known.
A different view of the entrance allowed the identification of a rectangular object. It is a ladder, L, in the entrance area of the tunnel.
The reason for the lack of progress may be because the IDF’s Southern Commander was conducing a situational assessment at the hospital, as described in the Appendix.
Tunnel Entrance on Day 3. The round structure in the center has been broken open.
Tunnel Entrance on Day 2. C are concrete columns, V ?, to the left is shown in the picture above. F is a foot at the bottom right, and provides a size reference. H looks like a curved handle to grab onto to get into or out of the hole. S is a shelf (usually called a tray) to run wires along. T are tubes. The lower T could be for liquids or wires. The upper T is a square tube embedded in concrete. There is a wire, W, coming out of it. Annotation based on assumed utility tunnel. (Picture enhanced by author to “see” into the hole.)
ISRAEL’S ADVANCES as of DAY 3
Israel’s advances as of Day 3 are shown in the map below. The map is from WarMapper.org, who are known for their maps of the Russo-Ukraine War, and is considered reasonably reliable. (No maps are being published by Israel, Hamas, the US, or any other country.)
The IDF has surrounded all of Gaza City and controls the areas in blue. Hamas controls the areas in green. The IDF is advancing into the city from the west and north in certain areas. The Al-Shifa Hospital is shown by a small round circle surrounded by the IDF. (Note: The ISW map for Day 3 shows no advance by the IDF from Day 2 to 3, which is unrealistic, and consequently not used.)
Map of Northern Gaza, November 19. The Al-Shifa Hospital is in Israeli Controlled Territory.
ISRAEL’S STRATEGY and AL-SHIFA HOSPITAL (author’s opinion)
The Israeli strategy is to squeeze Hamas into an ever smaller area until all of Northern Gaza is captured.
The purpose of the attack on the Al-Shifa becomes clear in the larger context of Israel’s strategy. The purpose of the attack is to capture, control and hold the hospital. The hospital has to be captured to prevent the IDF from being attacked in the rear by Hamas as they move deeper into Gaza City.
The attack wasn’t simply to find and destroy Hamas’ headquarters, tunnels and weapons stored at the hospital, and then move on. It is to capture, control and hold the hospital, which requires the removal of Hamas from the hospital. The destruction of the headquarters, tunnels and weapons isn’t needed at all. If the headquarters are part of the underground structure of the hospital, and the tunnels are actually the utility tunnels of the hospital (as discussed in the Day 2 diary), then the IDF wouldn’t want to destroy them. Such destruction would collapse the buildings built over the underground structures, and sever the hospitals utilities stopping the hospital from functioning.
This larger view also explains why the IDF hasn’t found the headquarters, and why we don’t know more about the tunnels. Going into the tunnels and underground structures risks blowing them up from any explosive devices planted by Hamas. And, it isn’t necessary for capturing the hospital, as long as the IDF can isolate these tunnels from those outside the hospital. It also prevents losing soldiers to any booby traps planted by Hamas.
Noa Marciano in Better Days
HOSTAGE
The body of Hamas’ hostage Corporal Noa Marciano was found on Friday in a structure adjacent to the Al Shifa hospital.She was only 19. She was in the Combat Intelligence Collection Corps and stationed at a military observation base near Kibbutz Nahal Oz. The base appears to be adjacent to the eastern border of Gaza. She was in a protected space and captured by Hamas on October 7 when the base was overrun. Her mother spoke with her at 7:30 am, but couldn’t reach her daughter 30 minutes later. A picture of her in better days is shown on the right.
Hamas' military wing claimed she was killed in an Israeli air strike on November 9. Hamas released a video of her alive on November 13. Her body was discovered on November 17. The author doesn’t know why Hamas would release this video after her death.
OTHER
The UN Security Council Resolution on the Israel-Hamas War (no. 2712) that wasn’t available on Day 2 became available the next day. It is given in the Appendix for reference herein.
The resolution was passed with 12 countries for, none against and 3 abstaining, including the United States. A list of the countries and how they voted is below.
For: China, Japan, France, Switzerland, Albania, Malta, United Arab Emirates, Mozambique, Gabon, Ghana, Ecuador, and Brazil.
Abstaining: Russian Federation, United Kingdom, and United States
Daily Kos readers should note that this is the only such list that is available now, as the UN hasn’t published the voting yet. (The author compiled this list from the current membership of the UN Security Council, and the reports of the countries who abstained.)
The resolution is wordy, and is in the language of UN diplomacy. The author has made an attempt to better understand the resolution, instead of relying only upon the media and a brief to very long description by the UN.
The first page of the resolution is the Preamble, and gives the background and reasons for the resolution. The second page is the Operative Part. Each numbered point is an action and must begin with a verb. The UN lists 103 verbs that can be used. Unfortunately, the UN doesn’t provide a dictionary for what the UN means by each verb.
Resolution 2712 uses three verbs for what Israel and Hamas are to do, and two verbs for internal administrative actions by the UN. The three verbs are “demands,” “calls” and “underscores.” To the author, “demands” sounds like the UN really means it, “calls” is less definite, and “underscores” means you should pay attention. In order to clarify this interpretation, the author checked the internet and found a long article on how to interpret UN resolutions, titled “The Interpretation of Security Council Resolutions” published in the Max Planck Institute's Yearbook of UN Law. The article summarizes the interpretation method starting on page 89. However, in the last paragraph on page 74, it states that there are no rules for interpreting Security Council Resolutions.
So, what does this resolution mean ? The first point, the demand point, is that “all parties” follow international law, including international humanitarian law. This demand is pretty straightforward, except when international law is vague, which is the case for some situations on when a hospital can be attacked.
The second point is a call, and calls for extended pauses in the fighting and safe passage. It lists a large number of actions called for under this point.
The third point is another call, and is short and to the point. It calls for the release of the hostages immediately and without any conditions, as well as immediate access to the hostages. It is the only place in the resolution that one of the parties is named, in this case Hamas.
=========== DIARY ABOVE ==========APPENDIX BELOW =============
APPENDIX
IDF Statement on Noa Marciano (first paragraph only)
The body of IDF soldier Corporal Noa Marciano, who was abducted by the Hamas terrorist organization, was extracted by IDF troops from a structure adjacent to the Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip and was transferred to Israeli territory.
IDF Statements
There was no press conference or press releases about the Al-Shifa Hospital on the IDF website on Friday, Nov. 17. There was only a paragraph in the daily update, which is below.
“Today (Friday), the Commanding Officer of the Southern Command conducted a situational assessment in the Shifa hospital following the targeted operational activity of IDF troops.”
UN SECURITY RESOLUTION 2712 (on the Israel-Hamas War, but referred to as “the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question)
Resolution 2712 (2023)
Adopted by the Security Council at its 9479th meeting, on 15 November 2023
(page 1)
The Security Council,
Reaffirming the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,
Reaffirming that all parties to conflicts must adhere to their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law,
Stressing that international humanitarian law provides general protection for children as persons taking no part in hostilities, and special protection as persons who are particularly vulnerable, and recalling that the taking of hostages is prohibited under international law,
Recalling that all parties to armed conflict must comply strictly with the obligations applicable to them under international law for the protection of children in armed conflict, including those contained in the Geneva Conventions of 12th Augu st 1949 and the Additional Protocols of 1977, as well as the relevant conventions regarding the involvement of children in conflict situations,
Expressing deep concern at the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and its grave impact on the civilian population, especially the disproportionate effect on children, underlining the urgent need for full, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access, and stressing the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence and the obligation to respect and protect humanitarian relief personnel,
Rejecting forced displacement of the civilian population, including children, in violation of international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law,
Expressing deep concern that the disruption of access to education has a dramatic impact on children, and that conflict has lifelong effects on their physical and mental health,
Commending the ongoing efforts of several regional and international actors as well as of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to address the hostage and humanitarian crises,
(Page 2)
1. Demands that all parties comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, notably with regard to the protection of civilians, especially children;
2. Calls for urgent and extended humanitarian pauses and corridors throughout the Gaza Strip for a sufficient number of days to enable, consistent with international humanitarian law, the full, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access for United Nations humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners, the International Committee of the Red Cross and other impartial humanitarian organizations, to facilitate the continuous, sufficient and unhindered provision of essential goods and services important to the well-being of civilians, especially children, throughout the Gaza Strip, including water, electricity, fuel, food, and medical supplies, as well as emergency repairs to essential infrastructure, and to enable urgent rescue and recovery efforts, including for missing children in damaged and destroyed buildings, and including the medical evacuation of sick or injured children and their care givers;
3. Calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, especially children, as well as ensuring immediate humanitarian access;
4. Calls on all parties to refrain from depriving the civilian population in the Gaza Strip of basic services and humanitarian assistance indispensable to their survival, consistent with international humanitarian law, which has a disproportionate impact on children, welcomes the initial, although limited, provision of humanitarian supplies to civilians in the Gaza Strip and calls for the scaling up of the provision of such supplies to meet the humanitarian needs of the civilian population, especially children;
5. Underscores the importance of coordination, humanitarian notification, and deconfliction mechanisms, to protect all medical and humanitarian staff, vehicles including ambulances, humanitarian sites, and critical infrastructure, including UN facilities, and to help facilitate the movement of aid convoys and patients, in particular sick and injured children and their care givers;
6. Requests the Secretary-General to report orally to the Security Council on the implementation of this resolution at the next mandated meeting of the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East, and further requests the Secretary- General to identify options to effectively monitor the implementation of this resolution as a matter of prime concern;
7. Decides to remain seized of the matter.
[END]
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