Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis kills six, including a surgeon

Abu Shaira had worked at Nasser throughout the war and appeared in the 2026 documentary American Doctor. A health ministry official, Dr Mohammed Zaqout, called him one of the best doctors. Al-Farra said he was killed in his room, between caring for patients and preparing cases for surgery. A 13-year-old boy was also killed, and so was Khaled Abu Anza, 53, who his sister said had come to the hospital for physical therapy after surgery. She did not describe him as a member of Hamas.

What the Israeli military says

The Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Security Agency said they struck a senior Hamas member and other militants who had advanced attacks from the hospital. They named the target as Muhammad Abu Ismail, whom they describe as the commander of Hamas's Khan Younis Brigade, responsible for directing attacks on troops and for holding hostages. They said Hamas had established a presence in the hospital, used it as a command centre, stored weapons and carried out interrogations there, and they released graphics of the building and photographs of what they said were weapons. They gave no further evidence.

The army said it took steps to reduce harm to civilians, including precision munitions and aerial surveillance, and that it was looking into reports that medical workers, including Abu Shaira, and patients had been killed. Asked whether Abu Ismail was directly targeted, it said it would answer later. Israeli media said a commander of that name was killed. The accounts do not say Abu Shaira was the target. Hamas called the army's claims lies and the attack a war crime, and Gaza's health ministry called it a flagrant violation of international law that threatens what is left of the health sector.

The hospital, the ceasefire and the health system

Nasser is one of the few functioning medical facilities left in Gaza. According to the World Health Organization, of Gaza's 37 hospitals, 2 are fully functioning, 18 partially and 17 not at all. The hospital has been hit before. On 25 August 2025 a double-tap strike killed about 22 people, including five journalists, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it a tragic mishap. The army said it had investigated, and the findings have not been released.

The strike came under a ceasefire that took effect in October 2025. Palestinian health authorities say more than 1,600 people have been killed since then, and the total since the war began in October 2023 is above 74,600. Israel says four of its soldiers have been killed in the period. Each side accuses the other of violating the truce. Israeli attacks have reportedly increased in recent days, talks on the next stage of the ceasefire have stalled, and the Board of Peace backed by President Donald Trump has criticised Israel for not meeting its commitments.

The political deadlock behind the strikes is unresolved. Talks on the next stage of the ceasefire have stalled: Hamas says it will disarm only if Israel stops its strikes and withdraws, while Israel says it will stop only once Hamas is demilitarised. In the meantime, civilians and medical staff are caught between the two positions. The surgical department at Nasser is among the few places in southern Gaza where major operations can be done, so its damage has consequences for patients who are not connected to the strike itself.

Medical Aid for Palestinians, which supports departments at Nasser, said the attack was another indication that the so-called ceasefire has brought neither safety nor relief. The United Nations has not commented on this strike in the accounts available. The facts still to be established are who the strike targeted, whether any of the dead were militants, and whether the army will publish its evidence that the hospital was used for military purposes.