An Israeli airstrike on a hospital courtyard in central Gaza early Monday killed at least four people and ignited a fire that swept through a tent camp for displaced civilians, resulting in severe burns for more than two dozen individuals, according to Palestinian medical sources.
The strike targeted the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, which was already overwhelmed with casualties from an earlier attack on a school-turned-shelter that had killed at least 20 people. Hospital records show four deaths and 40 wounded from the latest strike, with 25 victims transferred to Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza due to severe burns.
Israel’s military claimed the airstrike targeted militants hiding among civilians but did not provide evidence. This incident is part of a pattern of Israeli strikes on crowded shelters and tent camps, with the military alleging Hamas fighters use these locations to stage attacks.
Associated Press footage from the scene showed children among the wounded, with distressing images of injured toddlers receiving emergency care on the hospital floor.
The attack comes as Israel continues its military campaign across Gaza, more than a year into the conflict that began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel. That attack killed approximately 1,200 people and resulted in about 250 hostages being taken, with around 100 still held in Gaza.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has led to over 42,000 Palestinian deaths, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which reports that women and children comprise more than half of the fatalities. The conflict has displaced about 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, many multiple times, and has resulted in widespread destruction across the territory.
Concerns are growing about Israel’s military strategy in northern Gaza, where the entire population of about 400,000 has been ordered to evacuate southward. Food aid has been blocked from entering the north since the start of the month, raising fears of a potential “surrender-or-starve” strategy that rights groups warn would violate international law.
As the Gaza conflict continues, tensions are also escalating on Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, where Hezbollah militants killed four Israeli soldiers in an aerial attack on Sunday. This incident, the deadliest since Israel’s ground invasion of Lebanon two weeks ago, has heightened concerns about a potential regional escalation of the conflict.
