In brief
The attack has forced evacuations and sparked outrage over targeting medical facilities.
An Israeli airstrike has severely damaged al Ahli Arab Hospital, the last operational hospital in Gaza City, igniting widespread concern and chaos among patients and medical staff. Eyewitness accounts describe the strike as having destroyed crucial intensive care and surgical units within the facility, where flames and thick smoke billowed as missiles impacted the two-storey structure.The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed the hospital was targeted due to a "command and control center used by Hamas" allegedly situated there. While no immediate casualties were reported, the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem stated one child died during the frantic evacuation process, which left many patients scrambling for safety. Witnesses captured footage of staff and patients, including several still in their hospital beds, fleeing the building under dire circumstances. Khalil Bakr, an eyewitness who was at the hospital with his injured daughters, recalled a harrowing escape, stating they narrowly avoided catastrophe. Al Ahli Arab Hospital, now largely destroyed, had been the sole fully functioning medical facility in Gaza City, following previous attacks that razed other hospitals and medical complexes in the region. Following the airstrike, the World Health Organization's director-general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reported the hospital could no longer provide care, forcing the transfer of 50 patients, while remaining unable to relocate 40 critically ill individuals. Humanitarian pleas have surged, condemning the attack on the hospital, particularly on Palm Sunday, a significant day for Christians. UK Foreign Minister David Lammy called for an end to such attacks on medical facilities, highlighting the degradation of healthcare access in Gaza as a result of ongoing conflict. The assault comes amidst a wider military campaign initiated by Israel in retaliation to a significant cross-border attack that claimed approximately 1,200 Israeli lives just weeks prior. With more than 50,933 casualties reported in Gaza since then, tensions remain high as the region braces for potential escalation.
