Rescue workers inspect a room at Nasser hospital after it was hit by a targeted Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on March 23, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP
Israel’s military struck the largest hospital in southern Gaza on Sunday (March 23, 2025) night, killing one person, wounding others and causing a large fire, the territory’s Health Ministry said.
The strike hit the surgical building of Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Younis, the Ministry said, days after the facility was overwhelmed with dead and wounded when Israel resumed the war in Gaza last week with a surprise wave of airstrikes.
Israel’s military confirmed the strike on the hospital, saying it hit a Hamas militant operating there. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because it operates in densely populated areas.
Like other medical facilities around Gaza, Nasser Hospital has been damaged by Israeli raids and strikes throughout the war.
More than 50,000 Palestinians have now been killed in the war, the Health Ministry said earlier Sunday (March 23, 2025).
The military claimed to have “eliminated” dozens of militants since Israel ended a ceasefire Tuesday (March 18, 2025) with strikes that killed hundreds of people on one of the deadliest days in the 17-month war.
Israel’s unrest over Gaza and political issues grew Sunday (March 23, 2025), with anger at Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as his government voted to express no confidence in the attorney general, seen by many as a check on the power of his coalition.
“I’m worried for the future of this country. And I think it has to stop. We have to change direction,” said Avital Halperin, one of hundreds of protesters outside Mr. Netanyahu’s office. Police said three were arrested.
Displacement under fire Israel’s military ordered thousands of Palestinians to leave the heavily destroyed Tel al-Sultan neighbourhood in the southern city of Rafah. They walked to Muwasi, a sprawling area of squalid tent camps. The war has forced most of Gaza’s population of over 2 million to flee within the territory, often multiple times.
“It’s displacement under fire,” said Mustafa Gaber, a journalist who left with his family. He said tank and drone fire echoed nearby.
The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said it lost contact with a 10-member team responding to the strikes in Rafah. Spokesperson Nebal Farsakh said some were wounded.
Israel’s military said it had fired on advancing “suspicious vehicles” and later discovered some were ambulances and fire trucks.
In Gaza City, an explosion hit next to a tent camp where people had been told to evacuate. Strikes kill Hamas leader Hamas said Salah Bardawil, a well-known member of its political bureau, was killed in a strike in Muwasi that also killed his wife. Israel’s military confirmed it.
Hospitals in southern Gaza said they received a further 24 bodies from strikes overnight, including several women and children.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said 50,021 Palestinians have been killed in the war, including 673 people since Israel’s bombardment on Tuesday shattered the ceasefire.
Dr. Munir al-Boursh, the Ministry’s General Director, said the dead include 15,613 children, with 872 of them under 1 year old.
The Ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count but says women and children make up over half the dead. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 fighters, without providing evidence.
Published – March 24, 2025 05:15 am IST
