IDF: Senior Hamas leader killed in Gaza hospital

March 29 (UPI) -- Israeli troops killed a Hamas leader during an ongoing operation at a central Gaza hospital, the Middle Eastern country's military said.

Israel Defense Forces said Ra'ad Thabet was killed Thursday in the maternity ward of Al-Shifa Hospital as he was attempting to escape into the courtyard with two other militants.

The IDF said Thabet was known to be among Hamas' 10 senior commanders, adding he was responsible for research and development, strengthening systems and was the head of the militia's production unit.

"He held a lot of knowledge about the organization regarding everything related to equipment and armament," IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told reporters Thursday during a press conference.

"He was close to [Yahya] Sinwar, [Mohammed] Deif, and Marwan Issa."

Sinwar, Dief and Issa are considered the highest-ranking officers in Hamas. The Israeli military is hunting both Sinwar and Dief, as Issa was killed earlier this month.

Hagari said Thabet was killed by soldiers of Shayetet 13, along with additional forces.

Thabet and the two other militants had been found during a search of the building that devolved into a firefight, he said.

"The terrorists fled, a chase ensued, there was gunfire and all three terrorists were eliminated in this operation," he said. "We are in the process of verifying their identities and will publish details about them later."

Al-Shifa in central Gaza City has been under Israeli attack for roughly two weeks, according to the World Health Organization. Earlier this week WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the conditions there as "utterly inhumane."

Tedros has called for an end to the siege.

The targeting of buildings designated as civilian hospitals in conflict zones is forbidden by the Geneva Convention.

Israel has repeatedly been accused of attacking medical facilities hundreds of times.

In mid-November, the IDF said it had found a Hamas tunnel under the medical facility.

Hagari said Thursday that there were 1,250 people inside the hospital when the Israeli military encircled it, with only 350 being patients or staff.

The remaining are suspects, he said.

"We have already identified 513 terrorist form Hamas and Islamic Jihad out of the 900 suspects," he said.

He said the decision it to continue the military operation inside the hospital.

"There are more senior operatives. There are more terrorists in the hospital," he said.

"We will reach all of them. Hamas is destroying the hospital, damaging the hospital, fighting within the departments, activating explosives, and burning the hospital. This hospital has been severely damaged as a result of Hamas' actions."