Israeli air strike destroys part of last functioning hospital in Gaza City

An Israeli air strike has hit Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City. This hospital is the last functioning one in the area.

Witnesses reported that the strike destroyed the intensive care and surgery departments. Video footage showed large flames and smoke rising from a two-storey building. Some patients were seen rushing away from the site.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed they targeted the hospital due to a "command and control center used by Hamas." Gaza's civil emergency service reported no casualties from the strike. However, one child died during the evacuation process, according to the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem.

Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry stated that the building was "completely destroyed." This led to patients and staff being forcibly displaced.

The IDF said it took steps to minimize harm to civilians. They issued warnings about potential strikes and used precise munitions with aerial surveillance.

A local journalist reported that an IDF officer called a doctor at the hospital. The officer instructed them to evacuate immediately, saying, "You have only 20 minutes to leave."

Footage on social media showed staff and patients leaving while it was still dark outside. Many Palestinians, including women and children, fled from a courtyard where they had sought shelter.

Part of Al-Ahli Hospital was reduced to rubble by this strike. Before the war, it was a small medical facility but is now crucial for Gaza City.

Al-Shifa medical complex and other hospitals in northern Gaza have been destroyed. The Hamas-run government condemned this attack as a horrific crime against patients and medical staff.

In October 2023, an explosion at Al-Ahli killed hundreds of people. Palestinian officials blamed an Israeli strike for that blast, while Israel attributed it to a failed rocket launch by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

The Israeli military began its campaign against Hamas after an unprecedented attack on October 7, 2023. About 1,200 Israelis were killed in that attack, with 251 taken hostage.

Since then, more than 50,933 people have died in Gaza according to its health ministry. Of those deaths, 1,563 occurred since March 18 when Israel resumed its offensive in Gaza Strip.