An Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza has killed at least six people and wounded more than 20, Gaza's Civil Defence agency said early on Thursday.
The strike hit the second floor of the Al-Yasin building at the Nasser Medical Complex in western Khan Younis, Anadolu Agency reported. The agency cited the hospital's director, whom it did not name, as saying the blast caused extensive damage to the intensive care and surgical wards. Reuters, quoting Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal, reported that the strike hit the hospital's surgery department.
The attack is the latest of several Israeli strikes on Nasser Hospital, the main medical facility in southern Gaza, and it comes 13 months into a ceasefire that took effect on 10 October 2025 and that each side accuses the other of breaching.
The Israeli military has not confirmed that it carried out the strike or said what it was targeting. A spokesperson told AFP they were checking for information on the incident. Anadolu and Middle East Eye reported that Israeli Army Radio described the strike as an "assassination operation", without giving further details.
Mahmoud Basal, the Civil Defence spokesperson, told AFP: "The death toll from the Israeli strike inside Nasser Medical Complex, west of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, has risen to six." Nasser Hospital confirmed six deaths in a statement, AFP reported.
Medics identified one of the dead as Rezik Abushira, a surgeon, according to Reuters. Basal said the bombardment caused severe casualties among medical staff, patients and displaced families sheltering inside the complex, TRT World reported. Middle East Eye reported that the casualties included staff and patients, some of them due for surgery the following day.
The death toll rose through the night. Reuters and Anadolu first reported four dead before the Civil Defence and the hospital put the figure at six. All the casualty figures come from the Civil Defence, a rescue agency under the Hamas-run administration in Gaza, and from the hospital itself. There has been no independent count.
The strike follows a week of deaths in the territory. Local emergency services told AFP that Israeli strikes killed seven people on Tuesday, including a 13-year-old boy; the Israeli military said it had targeted "military operatives". Anadolu reported five more killed in Gaza City and Bureij on Wednesday.
Gaza's Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, says Israeli attacks have killed 1,622 Palestinians and injured 5,878 since the ceasefire took effect. Its figures do not distinguish combatants from civilians. The Israeli military says seven soldiers and one civilian contractor have been killed over the same period, according to AFP.
Israel says Hamas is trying to regroup and rebuild its arsenal, Reuters reported, while Hamas says it is committed to the ceasefire and accuses Israel of trying to undermine it.
Nasser Hospital has been hit repeatedly during the war. In March 2025 a strike on its surgery department killed Ismail Barhoum, a Hamas political leader being treated there; Israel said it had targeted a key Hamas figure. In August 2025 a double strike on the hospital killed at least 20 people, including five journalists and four health workers, according to the director-general of the World Health Organization. Israel said it had been targeting a Hamas camera.
That August strike drew a sharp response from Westminster, with Sir Keir Starmer calling it "completely indefensible". The government has not yet commented on Thursday's strike.
The Times of Israel, citing Al Jazeera, reported that the strike had forced the hospital to halt operations in its surgical ward. The hospital has not published its statement in full or named its director.
Join the Discussion
Have something to say? Join the conversation!
Sign in to share your thoughts and engage with other readers.
Sign In Create AccountNo comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this article!