Gaza City, Palestine. Israel’s military killed two Palestinians in an air strike in Gaza City and destroyed two medicine warehouses near Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah in separate attacks on Saturday. The strikes came amid uncertainty over whether Israel had accepted a deal reached with Hamas on the group’s disarmament.
Gaza City strike
Palestinian health officials said two Palestinians were killed in the Sheikh Radwan area of Gaza City in an Israeli air strike.
Israel’s military said the people targeted were Hamas militants but did not provide further details.
Hospital supplies destroyed
Earlier, an Israeli air strike destroyed two warehouses used by Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital to store medicine, the Palestinian health ministry in Gaza said.
The military had no immediate comment on the strike.
Two other medicine warehouses and the hospital’s outpatient clinic were damaged. There were no immediate reports of injuries.
The hospital said the destroyed warehouses contained essential supplies for kidney failure patients undergoing dialysis, as well as gauze and other materials used for wound care and routine treatment.
“The Israeli occupation has committed a heinous crime,” said Khalil al-Daqran, a doctor at the hospital.
“In the middle of the night, (the military) targeted a warehouse containing medical supplies for the hospital, and the occupation completely destroyed it,” he told Reuters.
Warning and legal protections
Witnesses said the military issued an evacuation warning for the area before carrying out the strike.
Hospitals and other civilian sites are protected under international humanitarian law, although those protections can be lost if they are used for military purposes. Israel’s military says Hamas and other armed groups operate from civilian areas and facilities.
Fatima Sharab, a displaced Palestinian sheltering in a camp near the warehouses, said many people requiring medical care had been staying nearby to remain close to the hospital.