Israel’s military releases interrogation video in bid to defend assault on Gaza hospitals
CNNCNN — The Israeli military, in an effort to defend its devastating assaults on Gaza’s hospitals, this week released an edited interrogation video that it said bolstered its case that Hamas uses medical facilities as cover for military activity. In the footage, a man who is said to be a staff member of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, says he joined Hamas’ military wing in 2021, and that the organization and its ally, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, base themselves at hospitals because they believe the Israeli military will not target them there. The Geneva Conventions, a set of treaties that set humanitarian rules for war, protecting civilians and soldiers, say that images of prisoners of war should not be exposed to “public curiosity.” The International Committee of the Red Cross says that that extends to videotaped interrogations: “Even if POWs appear to make voluntary public statements or willingly participate in the recording of images, disclosure to the public remains unlawful,” because “their wellbeing depends entirely on an enemy power.” Physicians for Human Rights Israel, which has visited some of the more than 130 Gazan medical professionals in Israeli detention, says those detained have routinely been subjected to torture – something the Israeli government denies. Early in the war, the Israeli military released videos that it said showed Hamas’ presence at Al-Shifa hospital, presenting security camera footage that appeared to show hostages being brought through the hospital.