Recent airstrikes on healthcare facilities raise alarms about accessibility and humanitarian conditions in Gaza.
**Israel Conducts Airstrike on Gaza Hospital Amidst Southern Occupation Expansion**
**Israel Conducts Airstrike on Gaza Hospital Amidst Southern Occupation Expansion**
Israeli military targets Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza as occupation of southern region grows.
The Israeli military launched an airstrike early Sunday morning, striking the Ahli Arab Hospital in northern Gaza after instructing patients and staff to evacuate. While no casualties occurred from the attack itself, the rushed evacuation led to the death of a child with prior injuries, according to an official statement from the Anglican Church in Jerusalem, which oversees the facility. In the wake of this event, Israel announced that its troops had advanced their occupancy in the southern Gaza Strip, effectively isolating two strategically significant Palestinian urban centers.
The assault on Ahli Arab Hospital, a crucial pillar in Gaza's devastated healthcare framework, resulted in significant damage to a laboratory and pharmacy, as well as the emergency department and attached church. This facility was among the few remaining operational medical centers in Gaza, where the ongoing conflict that erupted after Hamas' October 2023 offensive has led to a dire humanitarian situation. Reports from the World Health Organization indicate that 33 out of the 36 hospitals in Gaza have sustained damage, and only 21 are currently functional, with escalating medicine shortages due to Israeli blockades on aid supplies.
The Ahli Arab Hospital had previously faced danger shortly after the commencement of hostilities, suffering damage when a missile struck a parking area where numerous displaced individuals were taking refuge. Although Hamas blamed Israel for the attack, Israel contended it stemmed from a misfire by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Israeli military officials claimed responsibility for the latest strike, asserting the facility was a Hamas operational base, although they provided no evidence to substantiate this. Hospital authorities, meanwhile, declined to comment on the utilization of their premises as a base by Hamas fighters.
The assault on Ahli Arab Hospital, a crucial pillar in Gaza's devastated healthcare framework, resulted in significant damage to a laboratory and pharmacy, as well as the emergency department and attached church. This facility was among the few remaining operational medical centers in Gaza, where the ongoing conflict that erupted after Hamas' October 2023 offensive has led to a dire humanitarian situation. Reports from the World Health Organization indicate that 33 out of the 36 hospitals in Gaza have sustained damage, and only 21 are currently functional, with escalating medicine shortages due to Israeli blockades on aid supplies.
The Ahli Arab Hospital had previously faced danger shortly after the commencement of hostilities, suffering damage when a missile struck a parking area where numerous displaced individuals were taking refuge. Although Hamas blamed Israel for the attack, Israel contended it stemmed from a misfire by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Israeli military officials claimed responsibility for the latest strike, asserting the facility was a Hamas operational base, although they provided no evidence to substantiate this. Hospital authorities, meanwhile, declined to comment on the utilization of their premises as a base by Hamas fighters.
