Israel's military has been searching Gaza City's Shifa Hospital for a Hamas command center that it alleges is located under the facility — a claim Hamas and hospital staff deny.
The evacuation, which Israel says was voluntary, left behind only Israeli troops and a small number of health workers to care for those too sick to move.
"We left at gunpoint," Mahmoud Abu Auf told The Associated Press by phone after he and his family left the crowded hospital.
He said he saw Israeli troops detain three men.
What led to the Shifa Hospital evacuation wasn't immediately known.
Persons:
Mahmoud Abu Auf, Ahmed Radwan, Yassin Sharif, Radwan, Philippe Lazzarini, Khan Younis, Yoav Gallant, Israel, Medhat Abbas, Ahmed Mokhallalati
Organizations:
Gaza, Palestinian, Hamas, Associated Press, Health Ministry, World Health Organization, United Nations
Locations:
Israel, Gaza's, Gaza, Khan, Gaza City