Israeli air strikes on a hospital compound in the Gaza Strip killed at least 500 Palestinians, the Associated Press quoted the Gaza Health Ministry as saying on Tuesday — the eve of US President Joe Biden’s visit to the Middle East.
Biden’s visit, potentially the riskiest of his presidency, is expected to see him reaffirm US backing for Israel and try to stop the escalating war spiralling into wider conflict.
Thousands of people have been killed since Hamas’ October 7 attack, with most of the dead on both sides civilians.
The ministry said the casualties at the Ahli Arab hospital in central Gaza were caused by an an explosion that was caused by an Israeli airstrike.
“Hundreds of victims are still under the rubble,” a statement said, calling it a “war crime”.
Soon after the deadly strikes, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas canceled his scheduled meeting with the US president, Reuters reported quoting a Palestinian official.
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari told a televised press briefing: “We will look into it… the strike happened just a short while ago.”
Separately, the United Nations agency supporting Palestinian refugees said six people were killed when one of its schools sheltering displaced families was hit, during Israeli air strikes.
UNRWA commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini called the bombing at Al-Maghazi refugee camp, also in central Gaza, “outrageous” and warned the death toll would likely rise.
“It again shows a flagrant disregard for the lives of civilians. No place is safe in Gaza anymore, not even UNRWA facilities,” he added.
Death toll in Gaza climbs to 3,000
Around 3,000 people, mostly children, have been killed in Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip over the past 10 days, the Palestinian health ministry said on Monday as the humanitarian crisis in the enclave continues to worsen.
More than 12,500 others have been wounded since Israel started bombarding Gaza in retaliation for Hamas attacks in Israel which killed more than 1,400 people. The ministry added that 61 Palestinians were also killed while 1,250 were wounded in the occupied West Bank during the same period.
Israel has vowed to annihilate the Hamas group after its fighters killed 1,300 people — the deadliest single day in Israel’s 75-year history. It now prepares to escalate a ground offensive in response to the Hamas blitz.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for broad international support in the country’s war against Hamas.
“The savagery that we witnessed perpetrated by the Hamas murderers coming out of Gaza were the worst crimes committed against Jews since the Holocaust,” Netanyahu said, referring to the extermination of more than six million Jews by the Nazis.
Israel has tightened its blockade on Gaza, including by restricting the entry of food, water and fuel and bombarding the area with air strikes that have killed thousands of Palestinians, displaced hundreds of thousands more and resulted in severe shortages of food, water and medical supplies.
