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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Bill Bowkett

Dozens dead 'including 22 children' as Israel launches wave of strikes on Gaza hospitals

Dozens of people have been killed following Israeli strikes on Gaza hospitals, according to Palestinian authorities.

At least nine missiles hit the European Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis on Tuesday night, sources said.

The dead and wounded were transferred to the nearby Nasser Hospital where medics are reportedly struggling to deal with casualties.

The Israel Defence Forces said it conducted a "precise strike" on "Hamas terrorists in a command and control centre", which it claimed was beneath the hospital.

A man carries a wounded child at the European Hospital (REUTERS)

But Hamas has rejected the allegation it is using hospitals and civilian homes as military bases amid Israel's renewed assault on the strip.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military hit homes in the northern town of Jabalia, killing at least 53 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

The Indonesian Hospital, one of northern Gaza's largest healthcare facilities, said 22 of those who died were children.

The IDF had warned residents to evacuate on Tuesday night due to reports of Hamas infrastructure in the area, including rocket launchers.

Gazans inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a house in Jabalia (REUTERS)

Earlier, Palestinian photojournalist Hassan Aslih died following a separate attack on the Nasser Hospital.

Tel Aviv had previously accused Aslih of being involved in the massacre of October 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 Israelis and resulted in another 250 being abducted.

He is said to have recorded and uploaded footage of "looting, arson and murder" during the atrocity that triggered the war in Gaza.

Israel's response has killed more than 52,000 Palestinians, according to Gazan health officials, and destroyed much of the coastal territory.

Palestinians evacuate patients from the European Hospital (AP)

The United Nations and other aid agencies have warned that parts of the region are on the brink of famine.

Rachel Cummings, Humanitarian Director of Save the Children, told LBC that children in Gaza are “barely staying alive” and having to "eat grass and animal fodder" to survive.

She said: "Children are starving in Gaza. There isn't any food, there isn't enough clean water. Children are getting sick. And we're deeply, deeply concerned about the impact that this is going to have on children — a whole generation of children."

"People are desperate and people are literally barely staying alive and doing what they can."

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