"Hamas and ' members operate a command and control node from Al-Shifa in Gaza City. [...] They have stored weapons there and they are prepared to respond to an Israeli military operation against that facility. [...] Hamas has deeply embedded itself within the civilian population. To be clear, we do not support striking a hospital from the air and we do not want to see a firefight in the hospital where innocent people, helpless people, sick people are simply trying to get the medical care that they deserve, not to be caught in a crossfire. Hospitals and patients must be protected. [...] As we have been clear on multiple occasions, Hamas's actions do not lessen Israel's responsibility to protect civilians in Gaza, and this is obviously something we're going to have an active conversation with our counterparts about."