Hamas has reported that an Israeli missile attack devastated the intensive care and surgical wings of Al-Ahli Hospital, Gaza City’s last operational medical centre.
Footage shared online showed the facility engulfed in fire and smoke, with panicked patients and hospital staff, some still in their beds, rushing to escape the chaos.
A journalist at the scene said the Israeli military contacted a doctor in the emergency department with a stark warning: evacuate within 20 minutes.
The officer reportedly instructed everyone, including displaced civilians, to move to a safe distance immediately.
Videos show the building being evacuated in darkness as families, including women and children, fled from the courtyard where they had been sheltering.
Despite the destruction, emergency services reported no fatalities from the strike.
Al-Ahli Hospital, once a minor medical centre, has become Gaza City’s primary hospital following the destruction of Al-Shifa and other northern hospitals amid the conflict.
Hamas’ media office condemned the strike as a “gruesome crime,” accusing Israel of deliberately targeting a hospital packed with patients and staff.
The same facility was struck in October 2023, resulting in a mass casualty incident. At the time, Palestinian authorities pointed fingers at Israel, while the Israeli government blamed a malfunctioning rocket fired by Palestinian Islamic Jihad an allegation the group denied.
The ongoing Israeli military operation followed the deadly October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas that killed around 1,200 people in Israel and led to the kidnapping of 251 individuals.
Since then, over 50,933 people have died in Gaza, including 1,563 deaths since March 18, according to Hamas-controlled health data.