Nasser hospital strike adds to Israel attacks on Gaza healthcare

An Israeli airstrike on Nasser Medical Complex in southern Gaza has killed six Palestinians, including a doctor and a 13-year-old child, and wounded dozens more, in the latest attack on the territory's devastated healthcare system.

The strike, which hit the surgical department of the Al-Yassin building in Khan Younis shortly after midnight on Thursday, caused extensive damage to operating theatres, laboratories and medical equipment, forcing several services to shut down.

According to Gaza's Government Media Office, more than 25 patients, companions and healthcare workers were injured. A subsequent report from emergency responders recorded 52 injuries, with 30 people requiring hospital treatment and another 22 treated at the scene.

Gaza Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal said rescue teams recovered six bodies and evacuated dozens of wounded people before concluding their operations.

The attack comes as Gaza's hospitals struggle with severe shortages of medicines, medical supplies and equipment following years of Israeli bombardment and an ongoing siege.

Hundreds of attacks on Gaza's healthcare system

Gaza's Government Media Office said Israeli forces had carried out 793 attacks affecting healthcare services since the beginning of the genocidal war; with attacks on hospitals, medical facilities, ambulances, healthcare workers and medical supply chains.

The office noted that at least 1,725 healthcare workers had been killed during the attacks by Israel.

The office said the latest bombing was a continuation of Israel's attacks on healthcare facilities and held Israel and the US administration responsible for the ongoing destruction.

It urged international organisations and human rights groups to take concrete measures to protect medical facilities and hold those responsible accountable.

Human rights expert Hussein Hammad told TNA that the strike had constituted a war crime and a serious violation of international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention, which provides special protections for civilian hospitals and medical personnel.

He warned that disabling vital departments at Nasser Medical Complex, one of southern Gaza's main surgical treatment centres, threatened the lives of hundreds of patients.

Hammad called for an independent international investigation and urgent protection for Gaza's remaining hospitals.

A history of attacks on Gaza hospitals

The latest strike has renewed scrutiny of Israel's repeated attacks on hospitals across Gaza, including bombardment, military raids, forced evacuations and arrests of medical workers.

On 13 October 2023, Israeli forces issued evacuation orders to hospitals in northern Gaza, despite warnings that many patients could not be moved safely.

The Indonesian Hospital was subsequently subjected to bombardment and siege. On 21 November 2023, approximately 500 patients and staff were evacuated to southern Gaza, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Al-Awda Hospital was also attacked in November 2023, with three doctors and a patient's companion killed.

Kamal Adwan Hospital was repeatedly bombed and raided, with medical personnel detained during Israeli operations.

In December 2024, Israeli forces stormed the hospital, leaving it out of service after extensive damage to its laboratories, operating theatres and medical storage facilities.

Al-Shifa Medical Complex, Gaza's largest hospital, was besieged and stormed by Israeli forces in November 2023, forcing patients, displaced civilians and medical personnel to leave under extremely difficult conditions.

Israeli forces raided the complex again in March 2024 during a military operation lasting approximately two weeks, leaving extensive destruction across its buildings and essential departments.

Following a visit in April 2024, the World Health Organisation confirmed that Al-Shifa had been rendered non-functional, with its emergency, surgical and maternity departments severely damaged.

Other facilities, including Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, have also suffered attacks and damage.

The UN Human Rights Office documented a broader pattern of attacks on Gaza's hospitals in a report covering October 2023 to June 2024.