Relatives grieve over a person who was killed in an Israeli strike that targeted areas in the northern Gaza Strip, outside Al Maamadani hospital on October 31, 2024. — AFP
At least 30 Palestinians were killed in Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, primarily in the north where one attack struck a hospital, igniting medical supplies and disrupting operations, according to health officials in the enclave. Israel's military has accused the Palestinian militant group Hamas of using Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya for military purposes, alleging that 'dozens of terrorists' have been hiding there. Health officials and Hamas deny these accusations.
Northern Gaza, where Israel claimed in January to have dismantled Hamas' command structure, is currently the main focus of the military's assault in the enclave. Earlier this month, Israeli tanks entered Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahiya to eliminate militants they said had regrouped in the area.
Eid Sabbah, director of nursing at Kamal Adwan — located in Beit Lahiya — informed Reuters that some staff had sustained minor burns after the Israeli strike hit the third floor of the hospital. There were no reports of casualties at the hospital, which Israeli forces had stormed and briefly occupied last week. Israel claimed to have captured around 100 suspected Hamas militants during that raid. Israeli tanks remain stationed nearby.
The health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip appealed to all international bodies 'to protect hospitals and medical staff from the brutality of the (Israeli) occupation'. The Israeli military stated that its forces are operating in the hospital area based on intelligence about the presence of terrorists and terror infrastructure in the vicinity.
'During the operation, it was discovered that dozens of terrorists were hiding in the hospital, with some even posing as hospital staff,' the military said in a statement following Thursday's strike.
Medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported on Thursday that one of its doctors at the hospital, Mohammed Obeid, had been detained last Saturday by Israeli forces. MSF called for the protection of Obeid and all medical staff who 'are facing horrific violence as they try to provide care'.
The Gaza war commenced after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli figures. Israel's subsequent assault on Gaza has resulted in the deaths of more than 43,000 Palestinians and reduced most of the enclave to rubble, according to Palestinian authorities.
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