Gaza's main hospital goes dark in intense fighting as Israel's attacks put it at odds with allies

Israeli troops and Hamas gunmen battled on Saturday outside Gaza's largest hospital where frantic doctors said the last generator had run out of fuel, causing the death of a premature baby and four other patients.

Thousands of war-wounded, medical staff and displaced civilians were caught in the fighting.

In recent days, fighting near Shifa and other hospitals in northern Gaza has intensified and supplies have run out. The Israeli military has alleged, without providing evidence, that the militant group Hamas has established command posts in and underneath hospitals, using civilians as human shields.

Medical staff at Shifa have denied such claims and accused Israel of harming civilians with indiscriminate attacks.

Shifa hospital director Mohammed Abu Selmia said the facility lost power on Saturday. “Medical devices stopped. Patients, especially those in intensive care, started to die," he said by phone, with gunfire and explosions in the background. He said Israeli troops were “shooting at anyone outside or inside the hospital” and prevented movement between buildings.

An Israeli officer, Col. Moshe Tetro, confirmed clashes outside the hospital but denied Shifa was under siege or direct attack. He said he was in touch with the director and had offered safe passage for those willing to leave through the hospital's east side. Amos Yadlin, a former head of Israeli military intelligence, told broadcaster Channel 12 that as Israel aims to crush Hamas, taking control of the hospitals would be key but require "a lot of tactical creativity,” without hurting patients, other civilians and Israeli hostages.

Five patients died at Shifa after the generator shut down, including a premature baby, said Medhat Abbas, a Health Ministry spokesman. The “unbearably desperate situation” at Shifa must stop now, the director general of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Robert Mardini, said on social media. UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths posted that “there can be no justification for acts of war in health care facilities, leaving them with no power, food or water."