Israeli strike on Gaza hospital kills at least six people, officials say

Detailed summary

The Palestinian health ministry said both medical staff and patients were killed in the strike, the latest despite an ongoing U.S.-backed ceasefire.. The Israeli military said it was targeting a Hamas commander and other militants.

An Israeli airstrike on a hospital in southern Gaza overnight killed at least six people, the health ministry in the Palestinian enclave said Thursday.

The strike hit a surgery building at Nasser Hospital, with medical staff and patients among those killed, the health ministry said. The Israeli military said it was targeting a Hamas commander and other militants.

The strike — the latest despite an ongoing U.S.-backed ceasefire — shattered ceilings and left debris strewn across rooms inside the hospital, which is one of the few functioning medical facilities left in Gaza after the destruction of Israel’s yearslong assault.

Palestinian surgeon Dr. Rizk Abu Shaira was among those killed, the health ministry said. He was featured in the 2026 documentary “American Doctor,” which followed three American doctors helping to provide medical care in Gaza.

Watermelon Pictures, which distributed the film, said it was “devastating by the killing” of the surgeon. Its thoughts were with the surgeon’s loved ones and colleagues, the company said in a statement published on social media Thursday morning, as it condemned the attack “and the continued assault on Gaza’s healthcare system.”

The Israeli military and Israel Security Agency said they struck a senior Hamas member, along with other militants, who they said had “advanced” attacks from the hospital in the southern Gaza Strip overnight. In a later statement, they identified the senior member as Muhammad Abu Ismail, whom they said served as the commander of Hamas’ Khan Younis Brigade and had also been responsible for holding hostages in Gaza.

The IDF and ISA said Hamas had “established a presence within the hospital complex and used it as a command center” and stored weapons and conducted interrogations and torture from within the medical complex. They shared photos of weapons alleged to have been found within the complex.

Hamas condemned the allegations that it was using the hospital for military operations as “lies of the criminal…

The…

Opening of the article, excerpted from NBC News. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.