Explainers
In Images | Death and doom at Gaza hospital, where 500 were killed in blast
Hospitals were considered a refuge for Gazans trying to survive the Israeli bombardment. However, on Tuesday night, the Ahli Arab Hospital was reduced to rubble when an explosion took place, killing at least 500 people. The attack has prompted anger and shock from around the world
FP Explainers Last Updated:October 18, 2023 09:37:56 IST 
The world was stunned and shocked when an airstrike struck the al-Ahli hospital in central Gaza on Tuesday night. The toll, according to the Ministry of Health has already crossed 500. AP
Amid the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip, hospitals became a safe haven for locals, trying to survive the heavy bombardment. Until Tuesday night.
On Tuesday night, the Ahli Arab hospital in central Gaza, was reduced to rubble after a blast took place, killing at least 500 people – women, children, aged and sick. If confirmed, the death toll would be among the highest for a single airstrike since 2008.
The health ministry in the Hamas-ruled region has blamed Israel for the deadly attack; a claim that Israel denies, saying that a rocket misfired by Islamic Jihad Palestinian militants caused the strike.
Related Articles
Amid the Israel-Hamas war, how Benjamin Netanyahu is losing the battle at home
Vantage | What’s next after six days of Israel-Hamas war?
The attack has been severely condemned; UN human rights chief Volker Turk said, “Words fail me. Tonight, hundreds of people were killed – horrifically – in a massive strike at Al Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza City, including patients, healthcare workers and families that had been seeking refuge in and around the hospital. Once again the most vulnerable.”
Jordan’s King Abdullah II, meanwhile, called the attack a “massacre” and a “shame on humanity”.
