Israel's attack on al-Alhi Hospital in Gaza City draws global condemnation

Al Jazeera

13-04-2025

A predawn Israeli strike on al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, the last major hospital providing critical healthcare in northern Gaza, has sparked condemnation in Palestine and across the world as Israel continues to attack healthcare facilities.
Israel on Sunday claimed it struck a Hamas command and control centre at the hospital, without providing evidence, while Hamas denied the allegations.
The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, which runs al-Ahli Hospital, condemned the attack, saying it occurred on 'Palm Sunday, the start of the Holy Week, the most sacred week of the Christian year.'
It said the twin strikes demolished the hospital's two-storey genetic laboratory and damaged the pharmacy and the emergency department buildings.
The Higher Presidential Committee for Church Affairs in Palestine, which is affiliated with the Anglican Church, said the attack constituted 'a grave violation of religious sanctity and fundamental principles of international humanitarian law'.
The head of the committee, Ramzi Khoury, asserted that the attack was a direct affront to Palestinian Christians and the global Christian community.
Britain's Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said in a statement on Sunday: 'The Anglican-run Ahli Hospital in Gaza is a place of healing and care for Palestinians living through unimaginable suffering. In unbearable conditions, its heroic doctors and nurses have cared for civilians who have endured 18 months of devastating violence'.
'For the only Christian hospital in Gaza to be attacked on Palm Sunday is especially appalling. I share in the grief of our Palestinian brothers and sisters in the Diocese of Jerusalem,' he said.
Gaza's Health Ministry said the bombing forced the evacuation of patients and staff. 'We call on international institutions and relevant authorities to protect the health sector in accordance with international laws and agreements,' it said in a statement.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) said the 'heinous aggression' was 'part of a systematic series of attacks targeting hospitals, schools, shelters and tents for the displaced in Gaza, within the context of a systematic war of extermination that violates all humanitarian and moral standards'.
PIJ blamed Israel for sowing panic among patients and staff by issuing a warning shortly before the strike. 'The international silence on Gaza is forcing it to become a graveyard for law and humanity,' it added.
Hospitals have special protection under international law. Israel has besieged and raided them nevertheless, some several times, and struck multiple ones while accusing Hamas of using them as cover for its fighters. Last month, Israel struck Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, the largest hospital in southern Gaza, killing two people and causing a large fire.
Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the hospital was out of service and a child had died as a result of the disruption of care.
The hospital was also forced to move 50 patients to other health centres, but 40 critical patients could not be moved, Tedros added.
'Attacks on health care must stop,' the WHO chief wrote on X. 'Once again we repeat: patients, health workers and hospitals must be protected. The aid blockade must be lifted. Ceasefire.'
British Foreign Minister David Lammy said Israel's bombing of medical facilities had 'comprehensively degraded access to healthcare' in the enclave.
'Al-Ahli Hospital has been attacked repeatedly since the conflict began. These deplorable attacks must end. Diplomacy not more bloodshed is how we will achieve a lasting peace,' Lammy wrote on X.
Qatar said the attack on the last functioning hospital in northern Gaza was a 'horrific massacre and a heinous crime against civilians' that constituted a grave violation of international humanitarian law.
The Foreign Ministry warned about the expansion of the cycle of violence across the region and said the international community must assume its responsibilities in protecting civilians.
Jordan also condemned the attack as well as Israel's systematic targeting of civilians in Gaza and the destruction of vital facilities that provide essential services to its population.
Egypt, too, issued a statement, calling the attack a grave violation of international humanitarian law and international norms and appealing for the international community's intervention in halting the attacks.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock questioned the modalities of the strike but stopped short of condemning the attack. 'The cruel Hamas terror must be combated. But international humanitarian law applies, with a special obligation to protect civilian areas. How can a hospital be evacuated in less than 20 minutes?' she asked in a post on X.