Israel’s special forces have launched a raid on the besieged Al Nasser medical complex, which is the main hospital in southern Gaza.

According to BBC News, the Israel Defense Forces said Hamas fighters were hiding inside and that the bodies of Israeli hostages might also be there.

A spokesperson for Hamas has denied those claims, calling them “lies”.

The hospital’s director, Nahed Abu-Teima, also reportedly told BBC News that conditions are “catastrophic and very dangerous”, saying, “Since the midnight hours, violent shelling and severe explosions have continued in the vicinity of the complex.”

He said the patients who had remained at the facility were “piled up in wards” with critical injuries and appealed to the UN and Red Cross to “save” them and the staff.

Meanwhile a report from Al Jazeera says a spokesperson for the Israeli government has said that it is not the time to discuss plans for Palestinian statehood.

The comment from Avi Hyman comes after a Washington Post report on the US and Arab allies preparing a plan that includes a timeline for a Palestinian state.

He is quoted as saying “Now is not the time to be speaking about gifts for the Palestinian people, at a time when the Palestinian Authority themselves have yet to even condemn the October 7 massacre. Here in Israel, we are still in the aftermath of the October 7 massacre. Now is the time for victory, total victory over Hamas. All discussions of the day after Hamas will be had the day after Hamas.”