Hospitals among targets of Israeli air strikes this week
On a single day this week, two hospitals in Gaza were hit by Israeli strikes, according to hospitals and first responders.
On Tuesday, Israeli warplanes dropped six bombs simultaneously at the European Hospital in Khan Younis, killing 28 people and injuring dozens, the Hamas-run civil defence agency said.
Dr Tom Potokar, a plastic surgeon who was working with the Ideals international aid charity in the hospital, told the BBC the explosions had directly hit with “no warning whatsoever”.
The Israeli military said it had conducted a “precise strike” on “Hamas terrorists in a command and control centre” which it claimed was beneath the hospital.
The dead and wounded were transferred to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, which had been hit by another strike earlier on Tuesday, killing two people, according to medical sources and eyewitnesses.
In a statement, the Israeli military said Hamas “continues” to use hospitals in Gaza for its activities – a long-standing Israeli allegation which the group denies.
The BBC obtained and analysed video footage of the European Hospital strike and the kind of bombs used.