Israeli strike near UN school in Jabaliya kills dozens after hospital carnage
The health ministry in Gaza says at least 27 people have been killed in an Israeli strike near a UN school in the Jabalia refugee camp.
“The bodies of 27 martyrs were recovered and a large number of wounded,” said ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra.
The bombing came after 43 rabbis issued a religious decree to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying it is religiously acceptable and permissible to bomb Palestinian hospitals in the besieged Gaza Strip.
A document signed by the rabbis states that there was no religious or moral objection to striking hospitals when civilians are allegedly used as shields and hidden behind them, Israel’s Channel 14 television news reported on Thursday.
The message had now been conveyed to military units, the prime minister and cabinet members, the report added.
The greenlight came after Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari alleged that Hamas was using Shifa Hospital as a shield and conducts attacks from hospitals.
Regarding the possibility of Shifa Hospital being targeted in Gaza, Hagari stated, “In this war, all options are on the table.”
In Gaza’s biggest hospital, al-Shifa doctors are faced with a massive influx of casualties, added to the thousands of displaced civilians taking shelter there.
On October 18, at least 500 civilians were killed by Israeli airstrikes on al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City.
At least 9,061 people have been killed since October 7, including 3,760 children and 2,326 women, Gaza’s health ministry. At least 32,000 people have been wounded.
Around 2,000 people are still missing in Gaza, including 1,100 children. The vast majority of these people are believed to be dead and buried under rubble.
“135 medical staff have been killed, and 25 ambulances destroyed” since the start of the war, the health ministry said, adding 16 hospitals are out of service in Gaza, and 32 medical care facilities are out of operation.
It’s now the 27th day since Israel launched its war on the Gaza Strip. The regime is pounding the besieged territory from the ground, sea and air as fighting is underway between resistance groups and Israeli troops.
The UN chief decried the regime’s raids. Antonio Guterres said he is appalled by the killing of Palestinians, including women and children, in Israel’s airstrikes on Jabalia.
Subhi Skaik, the director of the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, said the hospital, which mainly treats cancer patients, had used up its fuel and was now out of service.
Palestinian Health Minister Mai Alkaila confirmed that the hospital had ceased functioning after being attacked by the Israeli military.
“The Turkish Friendship Hospital in Gaza has stopped functioning after being shelled by Israeli forces on Monday and Tuesday, and due to a complete depletion of fuel supplies,” she said.
She said the hospital is the only facility dedicated to treating cancer patients in the Gaza Strip.
She cited serious threats to the lives of 70 cancer patients within the hospital, with approximately 2,000 cancer patients in the Gaza Strip as a whole.
“Al-Shifa Medical Complex will also cease its operations in less than 24 hours due to fuel depletion,” she added.
The Gaza Health Ministry earlier issued an urgent final call for assistance as the al-Shifa Hospital and Indonesian Hospital faced a critical shortage of fuel on Tuesday evening. It emphasized the urgent need for intervention from the international community to save the lives of those in the hospitals.
Israeli airstrikes on Gaza have repeatedly targeted hospitals, residences, mosques, and churches. Under the Geneva Convention, attacks on hospitals are strictly prohibited.
On Thursday, footage surfaced showing Israeli warplanes dropping white phosphorus bombs, which are internationally banned, on an UNRWA school located at al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza. The chemical can cause severe burns.
