In their report on the 2008–2009 war, Amnesty stated they found no evidence of Hamas directing civilians to shield military assets or forcing them to stay near buildings used by fighters.

[6] In 2014, Amnesty reported they had no evidence that Hamas or other Palestinian armed groups intentionally used civilians as shields to protect specific locations or military assets from Israeli attacks.

They suggested that Hamas's urging of residents to ignore Israeli evacuation warnings might have been intended to minimize panic and displacement, rather than to use civilians as human shields.

'"[10] In 2024, HRW reported at least two incidents where Palestinian fighters appear to have used Israeli hostages as human shields during the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel in Kibbutz Be'eri and Nahal Oz.

[26] Abu Zuhri was also quoted as saying, in a 13 July interview, that "Hamas despise those defeatist Palestinians that criticize the high number of civilian casualties.

[33] French-Palestinian journalist Radjaa Abu Dagg reported being interrogated by an armed Hamas member inside Al-Shifa Hospital and ordered to leave Gaza.

"[39] According to Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Amnesty International, "evidence suggesting that a rocket launched by a Palestinian armed group may have caused 13 civilian deaths inside Gaza underscores how indiscriminate these weapons can be and the dreadful consequences of using them".

[48][49] During the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, Israel stated that Hamas has strategically placed portions of its military tunnel system and command network beneath civilian infrastructure, including Gaza's al-Shifa Hospital.

An IDF spokesman told CBS News that "a systemic abuse by Hamas of sites and locations that are supposed to enjoy special protection under the Geneva Convention and humanitarian law".

[54][55] On 18 November CNN aired footage taken by the IDF showing what appears to be a person armed with an RPG launcher entering the premises of Al-Quds Hospital.

[61][62] On 1 January 2024, the Jerusalem Post released selected footage of the IDF's Unit 504 interrogations of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad militants.

Another alleged operative, Muhammad Darwish Amara from Palestinian Islamic Jihad, said Hamas planted a bomb in his home where his children were staying to coerce him into participating in terrorist activities.

[50][51][64] White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that the United States has intelligence indicating that Hamas is using the Shifa Hospital in Gaza City for military purposes, possibly for weapon storage and also for holding captives.

"[10] Human rights organizations have also demanded the release of hostages held by Hamas and cautioned that using them to shield military assets is prohibited under international law.

[74] According to a New York Times report, "Hamas has long been accused of using civilians as human shields and positioning underground bunkers, weapon depots and rocket launchers under or near schools, mosques and hospitals.

"[75] DW military analyst Frank Ledwidge has said that "it's been described... as 'common knowledge' that many of the headquarters [of Hamas] are located under hospitals... [with] entries and exits in places like mosques or schools... [or even] UN facilities... that's why we've seen... so many non-combatant casualties so far".

"[78] Gordon also refers to the extensive use of civilian buildings such as synagogues, primary schools and medical facilities by Zionist paramilitaries such as the Lehi to hide combatants and store arms in before the establishment of Israel in 1948, which is commemorated today with plaques, concluding: "The attempt by the Israeli authorities to justify their carpet bombing and blame Palestinians for bringing disaster on themselves through the use of ‘human shields’ is not only political sophistry, but forgetful of Israel’s own history.

"[78] John Spencer has said that "[Hamas has] built many of their tunnel entrances and exits and passageway underneath protected sites like hospitals, schools, mosques, because it restricts the use of force that the IDF can take without going through the... laws of war calculation".

She added that "in Gaza, tunnels are dug in civilian homes, pass under entire neighbourhoods, and lead into populated areas inside Israel... [which] enables Hamas to conceal entry and exit points, and facilitates undetected movement and activity.

The Gazan civilian interviewed said “We simply want to save all families, women and children and not let there be any potential threat against us because of the existence of police and members of the Hamas government,”.

[93] In 2014, Hamas denied that it had used human shields, and they pointed to prior United Nations investigations of claims that it had fired rockets from schools finding the allegations to be untrue.

Civilians in many such shelters have set up their own committees to oversee food, water, and medical distribution, with the presence of weapons being strictly banned regardless of political affiliations or membership of powerful clans and families.

Moreover, the issue of civilian casualties often creates internal debates within Israeli society, especially between the left-wing, who may critique the operation's consequences, and right-wing factions.

Simultaneously, Israel has consistently taken extensive measures to minimize innocent enemy casualties, employing special tactics and risking personnel – a record favorable in comparison to other countries dealing with terrorist threats.

[99] By contrast, Stephanie Bouchie de Belle, writing in the International Review of the Red Cross, argues that though the use of human shields is prohibited, it is not an act of perfidy.

By sharp contrast, Palestinian civilians are cast as human shields when Israel bombs Hamas command centers and military infrastructures in Gaza.

"[102] Amnesty International, in its analysis of the 2008 Gaza War, wrote that while it is uncontested that Hamas weapons and fighters were located in civilian areas, that in itself does not itself constitute human shielding.

Amnesty contrasts the Palestinian and Israeli positions, stating that "The close proximity of the military and weapons to civilian areas is also not unusual in Israel.

In Ashkelon, Sderot, Bersheva and other towns in the south of Israel... [and] elsewhere in the country, military bases and other installations are located in or around residential areas, including kibbutzim and villages.

"[6] Ha'aretz writer Michael Brizon argued in 2014 that Israel's charge of human shields is hypocritical given the IDF military command center is located near Ichilov Hospital.