An Israeli airstrike has severely damaged the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City, hitting its intensive care and surgery departments. Video footage shared on social media showed massive flames and plumes of smoke rising from the two-storey building after it was struck by missiles. Several people, including patients still in hospital beds, were seen fleeing the site in panic.

The attack comes amid ongoing tensions in Gaza, where the hospital had become a crucial lifeline for those seeking medical care. A local journalist present at the hospital stated that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had called a doctor operating in the emergency department and instructed them to evacuate immediately. The officer reportedly told the doctor, “You have only 20 minutes to leave. All patients and displaced people must go out to a safe distance.”

Despite the chaotic scene, no casualties have been reported so far, according to local civil emergency services. Hamas has labeled the strike a “horrific crime” by Israel, and condemned the attack on a hospital that houses hundreds of vulnerable patients and medical staff.

Al-Ahli Hospital had already been struggling to provide care due to the ongoing conflict, and it is now the only operational medical facility in Gaza City after other hospitals, including the Al-Shifa medical complex, were destroyed. The hospital had become a critical resource for Palestinians, many of whom had taken shelter there to avoid the violence in the streets.

Hamas officials condemned the Israeli strike, emphasizing the devastating impact it has had on civilians. “Israel is committing a horrific crime by targeting Al-Ahli Hospital,” said a spokesperson for the Hamas-run government in Gaza. They further described the attack as part of a broader effort to disrupt essential services and inflict suffering on the Palestinian population.

This attack on Al-Ahli is not the first instance of violence against medical facilities in Gaza. In October 2023, a previous strike on the same hospital killed hundreds, with both Israeli and Palestinian authorities blaming each other for the blast. While Israel insisted that the blast was caused by a failed rocket launch by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the militant group denied responsibility.

In the aftermath of the latest strike, hospitals in Gaza face mounting pressure as they struggle to treat the injured and accommodate displaced people. The Israeli strike on Gaza hospital has become the latest flashpoint in an already volatile region, sparking widespread condemnation from international human rights organizations and diplomatic bodies. The world continues to watch as the conflict escalates and more medical facilities become targets of the ongoing violence.