Injured Palestinians arrive at al-Shifa Hospital following Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, Oct 16, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

JERUSALEM - Israel's army said on Wednesday that it has killed about 90 Palestinians and arrested 600 others in a raid at al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza.

Israel has been conducting the attack on the hospital for three days. Once Gaza's largest medical center, al-Shifa Hospital is one of the few hospitals that are still functioning after the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict, and now serves as a shelter for displaced Palestinians.

Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of Gaza's Hamas-run government media office, said all of those killed had been wounded patients and displaced persons inside the hospital

In a video from the al-Shifa compound, Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Daniel Hagari said that "in these buildings, many Hamas operatives and seniors have been hiding."

He said the forces located weapons in the hospital and avoided harm to patients and medical staff.

According to Hagari, more than 250 people have been arrested and "identified" by the Israeli forces as Hamas and Islamic Jihad operatives, and another 350 people were still in interrogations.

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The Israeli army claimed that all the fatalities were militants, a statement refuted by Hamas. 

Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of Gaza's Hamas-run government media office, said all of those killed had been wounded patients and displaced persons inside the hospital.

"The Israeli occupation army practices lying and deception in spreading its narrative as part of justifying its continuous and law-breaking crimes, which violate international law, international humanitarian law," he said.

Israel faced fierce criticism last November when troops first raided the hospital. The troops uncovered tunnels there, which they said had been used as command and control centres by Hamas. Hamas and medical staff deny that the hospital is used for military purposes or to shelter fighters.

With Reuters inputs