Gaza government calls for end to international tolerance of Israel targeting hospitals

GAZA CITY, Palestine

The government in Gaza on Monday called for end to international tolerance of Israel targeting hospitals, a violation of both the rules of war and international law.

Sunday’s attacks on the Kamal Adwan Hospital not only constitutes a violation of international humanitarian law but also signify an Israeli plan to undermine the health care sector, the government media office said Monday in a statement on Telegram.

The Israeli army has directly targeted over 14 hospitals in Gaza City and northern Gaza, attempted to assassinate several doctors, and arrested 35 physicians, including Dr. Mohammed Abu Salameh, general director of the Al-Shifa Medical Complex, the largest in Gaza, the statement added.

Targeting hospitals constitutes an organized war crime, punishable under international law and prohibited by various international statutes and conventions, the statement said.

At least four people were killed and nine others wounded in an Israeli airstrike Sunday that targeted the entrance to Kamal Adwan Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, local media reported.

The Israeli army resumed bombing the Gaza Strip last Friday after declaring an end to a weeklong humanitarian pause.

Israel launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

The death toll from Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip since the start of the conflict on Oct. 7 is nearly 15,900, the Health Ministry in the besieged Palestinian enclave said Monday.

The number of wounded through the same period has risen to more than 42,000.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio