Israeli army hits surgery floor of Indonesian Hospital in Gaza

By Hamdi Yılmaz

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - The Palestinian Health Ministry reported on Monday that the Israeli army had targeted the surgery floor of the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, causing significant damage to its medical equipment.

Munir al-Bursh, the director of hospitals in Gaza, spoke from the hospital and mentioned that dead bodies were still accumulating within the facility, which has been surrounded by Israeli military vehicles for several days.

He further explained that the hospital was the only one partially functioning in Gaza City and the northern Gaza region, as all other hospitals in Gaza City had become non-operational, including Al-Shifa Hospital, which is currently under Israeli military control.

"650 injured people are in the [Indonesian] Hospital while its capacity is only 140 beds," al-Bursh said.

He also noted that the Israeli military drones opened fire on Palestinians who tried to flee from the hospital.

Early on Monday, the Gaza-based Health Ministry said 12 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others injured as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the Indonesian Hospital.

The Ministry accused the Israeli army of seeking to turn the hospital into "a mass grave."

The Hamas group which has ruled Gaza since 2007 and confronts the Israeli military in Gaza, said the Israeli authorities seek to destroy the Palestinian health sector in Gaza as part of its plan to forcibly expel the Palestinian people from Gaza.

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

At least 13,000 Palestinians have been killed, including over 9,000 women and children, and more than 30,000 others injured ever since, according to the latest figures.

Thousands of buildings, including hospitals, mosques and churches, have also been damaged or destroyed in Israel’s relentless air and ground attacks on the besieged enclave.

The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is around 1,200, according to official figures.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar