A series of airstrikes near medical facilities in Gaza City have resulted in multiple fatalities, according to local hospital officials. The Israeli military has stated the strikes targeted Hamas leaders hiding within civilian infrastructure. The UK Foreign Office has issued an urgent statement calling for restraint and adherence to international humanitarian law in densely populated civilian zones.
The strikes hit the vicinity of Al-Shifa Hospital and the Indonesian Hospital, two of the largest medical centres in northern Gaza. The Hamas-run health ministry reports 17 confirmed dead and over 50 wounded, with rescue teams still searching through rubble. Witnesses described scenes of panic as buildings shook and smoke engulfed hospital entrances.
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claim the operation was precise and directed at a command centre embedded within a residential compound, not the hospitals themselves. “We have clear intelligence that Hamas operatives were using this location to coordinate attacks,” said IDF spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Avichay Adraee. The military has released satellite imagery showing what it says are tunnel shafts and launch sites near the medical zones.
International observers remain sceptical. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) noted that both hospitals had been previously evacuated of non-essential staff but were still treating hundreds of patients. “These facilities are protected under Geneva Conventions,” said Jamie McGoldrick, UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory. “Any military action without clear evidence of immediate threat is deeply concerning.”
In London, Foreign Secretary David Lammy urged Israel to demonstrate “maximum restraint” and to ensure civilian infrastructure remains safe. “The UK strongly supports Israel’s right to defend itself, but the cost of this war on innocent lives must be measured. We call for an immediate de-escalation in populated areas,” Lammy told Parliament.
This is not the first time hospitals have been caught in the crossfire. Since October 2023, over half of Gaza’s medical facilities have been damaged or destroyed, pushing an already strained healthcare system to the brink. The World Health Organization reports that only 13 of 36 hospitals remain partially functional.
Hamas political bureau member Osama Hamdan denied the presence of any command posts in the vicinity, labelling the strike a “brutal massacre”. He accused Israel of deliberately targeting medical workers to collapse Gaza’s health sector. No independent verification has been possible due to restricted access.
The situation underscores the moral complexity of urban warfare where combatants deliberately embed among civilians. A physics analogue might be the impossibility of extracting a single particle from a chaotic system without disturbing the whole. Every strike carries an inherent probability of collateral damage, but the repeated targeting near hospitals suggests either gross negligence or calculated strategy.
From a technological perspective, precision-guided munitions can reduce civilian casualties, but only if intelligence is accurate and timing is chosen to minimise harm. The IDF claims it used smaller warheads and gave evacuation warnings. However, in a hospital context, moving critical patients can be lethal in itself.
The UK’s call for restraint may have limited effect. Military analysts note that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has faced domestic pressure to eliminate Hamas leadership at any cost. Meanwhile, the humanitarian toll mounts: over 38,000 Palestinians have died since the conflict began, according to health authorities.
As the debate rages over proportionality and legality, the dead lie in morgues and the injured fill corridors. The world watches with data points and moral calculus. But for Dr. Helena Vance, looking at climate-related conflicts taught me that when systems are stressed to breaking point, civilised norms are often the first casualty. We must consider whether the current military doctrine is compatible with preserving any semblance of a functional society.
