A surgeon is among six killed as an Israeli strike hits the operating floor of Gaza’s Nasser Hospital

An Israeli air strike in the early hours of Thursday, local time, hit the surgery department of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, killing at least six people, among them a surgeon, and wounding about 20 others.

Gaza’s Civil Defence agency said the strike landed on the second floor of the Al Yasin building inside the Nasser Medical Complex, where operating theatres are. Its spokesperson, Mahmoud Basal, said the damage was extensive. Images from the hospital show collapsed ceilings, hanging cables and rubble across the ward.

Gaza’s health ministry named the surgeon as Dr Rizk Abu Shaira. The other victims had not been named by Thursday evening, Perth time.

What does Israel say it was aiming at?

The Israeli military said it struck the hospital overnight because a senior Hamas member and other fighters from the group’s armed wing were using it as a command centre. It said parts of the complex were being used to store weapons and to hold interrogations.

The military said it took “steps to mitigate harm to civilians”, including precision munitions and aerial surveillance. It released graphics of the building and audio of a warning it said was given to the health ministry to stop Hamas using hospitals. It has not released further evidence, and its account has not been independently verified.

How have Palestinians and others responded?

Gaza’s health ministry called the strike a “flagrant violation of international laws and conventions”, saying attacks on hospitals deepen the suffering of the sick and wounded. Hamas called it a war crime.

Physicians for Human Rights Israel, an Israeli medical rights group, said repeated attacks on hospitals and health workers were “further devastating an already shattered healthcare system”.

Why does Nasser Hospital matter?

Nasser is the largest hospital in southern Gaza, and its surgery department serves a population squeezed into a shrinking share of the territory. It has been hit several times before. On 25 August 2025 a double strike there killed 22 people, including five journalists; Israel’s military inquiry into that attack has not been made public.

Under international humanitarian law, hospitals are protected. They can lose that protection only if they are used to commit acts harmful to the enemy, and even then a warning must be given and any attack must still be proportionate to the military advantage expected. That is why the evidence Israel offers, and whether a warning was given in time, will be closely examined.

Is the ceasefire still holding?

On paper, yes. In practice, more than 1,600 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire began in October 2025, taking the total death toll reported by Gaza’s health authorities above 74,600. Israel says four of its soldiers have been killed in the same period.

Israel controls about two-thirds of Gaza’s territory and has ordered residents out of areas it holds. Talks on the next stage of the ceasefire are stuck on Hamas disarmament and Israeli withdrawal, and strikes have increased in recent days: on Tuesday, attacks across Gaza killed at least seven people, including a father and his 13-year-old son in Gaza City.

What does it mean for Australia?

Australia recognised a Palestinian state in September 2025 and has repeatedly called on Israel to protect civilians and aid and health workers in Gaza. Strikes on hospitals test the ceasefire Australia has backed and the international law it says must apply to every party.

VNN will update this story as more is confirmed.