Israeli strike on Gaza’s Nasser Hospital kills six and injures at least 27
An Israeli airstrike on Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, killed six people and injured at least 27, according to the World Health Organization. The attack struck one of Gaza’s few remaining functioning hospitals and severely damaged its surgical department, operating theatres, recovery facilities and intensive care unit. Images from inside showed shattered ceilings, twisted metal, rubble and damaged medical equipment and beds, while rescue workers searched the wreckage and relatives gathered outside to pray over the dead.
Gaza’s Health Ministry identified one of those killed as general surgeon Rizk Abu Shaira. The Israeli military acknowledged carrying out the strike, saying it had targeted a senior Hamas commander and other militants allegedly operating from the hospital, but it provided no evidence for the claim. Hamas denies Israel’s repeated allegations that it uses hospitals for military purposes.
Hospitals and medical workers are protected under international humanitarian law, although those protections can be affected if a facility is used for acts harmful to an enemy and strict conditions are met. The WHO said 1,056 attacks on healthcare facilities and personnel had been documented in Gaza since October 2023, causing 1,010 deaths and 1,725 injuries. It also warned that winter rain, flooding and cold could deepen the humanitarian crisis as water and sanitation systems remain severely damaged, and renewed its call for humanitarian access and protection for medical facilities.
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