Israeli Strike Kills Six in Gaza Hospital, Health Authority Says

An Israeli airstrike hit the surgical wing of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis early on Thursday, killing six people and wounding 28 others.

Surgeon and Patients Killed in Surgical Wing

The overnight bombing tore through the upper floors of the hospital complex shortly after midnight, destroying recovery areas and scattering debris across medical beds.

Among the dead was Dr Rizq Abu Shaira, 53, a general surgeon who had previously featured in a documentary about medical staff operating in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. A 13-year-old boy scheduled for surgery and a disabled patient were also among the victims, as reported by CNN and Middle East Eye.

According to the Gaza Civil Defense rescue service, the strike struck shortly after midnight and hit the surgery department of the facility, leaving charred debris scattered across the ruined rooms.

Paramedic and ambulance driver Naseem Hassan described seeing at least two missiles hit the roof of a four-story building in the compound, penetrating the third floor and exploding inside the surgical department on the second floor. British surgeon Goher Rahbour, who is volunteering at the facility, recalled that the blast shook the entire building and left the recovery area reduced to rubble.

“Dr Rizq was the kindest person in this department. He was very kind and always willing to help… And of course, he was a surgeon, one of the best among us,” Dr Mohammed Qdeih, a general surgery specialist who was wounded in the head during the blast, told the BBC.

British surgeon Goher Rahbour, who is volunteering at Nasser Hospital, was on the fourth floor when the munitions struck. He said that he had been operating alongside Abu Shaira just hours before the attack.

A man in blue scrubs searches through rubble of a damaged room in a hospital
Photo: ABC News & Headlines

IDF Strike Kills Hamas Commanders at Hospital Complex

The Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Security Agency released a joint statement asserting that the precise strike targeted a senior Hamas terrorist and additional fighters operating from within the hospital. Israeli authorities said that the complex had been turned into a command center for military activities, storing weapons, and conducting interrogations.

Later on Thursday, the IDF announced that Muhammad Abu Ismail, commander of Hamas’s Khan Younis Brigade, was killed in the operation. Palestinian media reports also named Khaled Abu Anza as a brigade commander targeted in the strike, while Israeli officials separately said that Murad Abu Zurifa, accused of participating in the kidnapping of Adina Moshe from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, was among those killed.

Hamas rejected the military’s rationale, calling it a “blatant attempt to cover up a new war crime,” as reported by the BBC. Gaza’s health ministry condemned the attack as a “flagrant violation of international laws and conventions.”

Destruction of Remaining Medical Infrastructure

The strike further strains Nasser Hospital, which serves as one of the last functioning major referral facilities in the southern Gaza Strip. Hospital director Dr Ahmed al-Fara told a news conference that two missiles hit the al-Yasin surgery building, though one of the munitions failed to explode.

Israeli strike on a Gaza hospital kills 6 people, health authorities say — Associated Press

“What’s happened in Nasser Medical Complex is targeting the health sector mainly. We are talking about doctors, we are talking about civilians, we are talking about patients,” al-Fara said, adding that the facility faces severe shortages of essential medicines and supplies heading into the winter months.

Keep reading


Discover more from Archyworldys

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.