Israel hits al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza, leaving it non-operational
A man carries a satellite dish near a damaged media van in the aftermath of an Israeli strike on the Al-Ahli hospital, also known as the Baptist or Ahli Arab hospital, in Gaza City on April 13, 2025. (AFP Photo)
The Israeli military confirmed on Sunday that it had conducted an airstrike on the al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City, alleging that the facility was being used by Hamas as a “command and control center.”
The strike, which occurred in the early hours of Sunday, destroyed a main building within the hospital complex and ignited fires across several departments, effectively rendering the hospital out of service.
In a statement, the Israeli army claimed that its warplanes targeted a Hamas command center “embedded within the hospital” in northern Gaza. The military did not provide evidence to support its claim.
A journalist from Anadolu Agency reporting from the scene confirmed that two missiles hit the hospital’s main reception building, completely demolishing it. The explosion also caused fires in the emergency ward, laboratory facilities, and the pharmacy.
Medical personnel told Anadolu that the hospital is no longer operational and cannot admit patients amid ongoing Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip.
According to eyewitnesses, Israeli forces had issued warnings before the attack, ordering the hospital’s evacuation. Dozens of wounded patients and staff were forced to shelter in the surrounding streets in freezing temperatures. Medical sources said one injured child died during the evacuation, and others remain in critical condition.
The al-Ahli Baptist Hospital had been providing crucial services to more than 1 million residents in the Gaza and North Gaza governorates amid the near-total collapse of the healthcare system since Israel’s military operation began on Oct. 7, 2023.
This is not the first time the hospital has been targeted. On Oct. 17, 2023, an earlier airstrike on the facility killed at least 471 people, including displaced civilians, medical staff, and patients, according to health officials in Gaza.
Israel kills nearly 51,000 people in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023
More than 50,900 Palestinians—most of them women and children—have been killed in Gaza since the start of the Israeli campaign, according to local authorities.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants in November 2023 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza.
Separately, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is currently hearing a genocide case brought against Israel over its military operations in the enclave.
