Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital kills at least six, Gaza civil defence agency says

At least six people have been killed after an Israeli airstrike hit a building at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, an official from the Hamas-run civil defence agency has said.The strike hit the surgery department of the hospital in Khan Younis, wounding at least 20 people and causing extensive damage, spokesperson Mahmoud Basal told news agency AFP.A surgeon is reported to be among those who were killed during the strike early on Thursday.There has been no immediate response from the Israeli military. The BBC has contacted the Israel Defense Forces for comment. The BBC is prevented by Israel from reporting independently from inside the Gaza Strip, and is unable to verify details of the incident.Recovery work is carried out by the Civil Defence in Gaza, which operates under the Hamas-run interior ministry. Its efforts have been supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).Nasser Hospital, the largest in southern Gaza, was hit by a double Israeli strike in August 2025, which killed at least 20 people, including journalists and health workers. Israeli strikes on Gaza have continued despite a ceasefire agreement in October last year. More than 1,600 people have been killed since then, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.Israel and Hamas have accused each other of violating the ceasefire. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has also worsened from recent heavy rains that reportedly flooded tens of thousands of tents that were housing displaced families. The Gaza war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, when about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.Since then, more than 74,645 people have been killed in Gaza, the health ministry says.