GAZA CITY (The Thursday Times) — A bustling Baptist hospital in Palestine’s Gaza City bore the brunt of a premeditated Israeli airstrike, leaving more than 500 individuals dead according to a civil defence chief in Gaza.
The targeted healthcare facility, the Al-Ahli al-Arabi Baptist Hospital, was at the time filled with wounded Palestinians and other individuals. The health ministry confirmed the airstrike which resonated through the densely populated area of the city.
The Israeli military has been identified as the perpetrator behind this deadly assault amidst the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. This catastrophic event unfolded on the eve of US President Joe Biden’s scheduled visit to the region.
The Israel’s IDF, or Israeli Defence Forces, on the other hand, mentioned that they were “still ironing out all the details” regarding the reports of the strikes on both the hospital and a school, which was also hit during the same timeframe.
The aftermath of this tragedy reverberated on the global stage, with significant political figures expressing their condemnation. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau remarked that hitting a hospital was unacceptable, while Egypt denounced the attack in the strongest terms. The United Nations also condemned the apparent attack, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) expressing strong disapproval of the tragic incident.
Apart from the hospital, a UN school functioning as a shelter for displaced individuals was also targeted in an airstrike, leading to at least six fatalities and causing severe structural damage to the school. This school was sheltering at least 4,000 individuals at the time of the attack.
