An Israeli airstrike targeted a hospital courtyard in the Gaza Strip early Monday morning, resulting in the deaths of at least four individuals and causing widespread damage to a tent camp housing displaced persons. This incident ignited a fire that left more than two dozen people with severe burns, according to medical personnel in the region.

The airstrike hit the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital located in Deir al-Balah, a central city in Gaza, where the medical staff was already overwhelmed with casualties from a previous attack on a nearby school-turned-shelter that had killed approximately 20 people. The hospital was already struggling to provide care for the injured, making the new crisis even more challenging.

Witnesses and reports from the scene described flames engulfing the makeshift tents of displaced Palestinians, indicating the extent of the devastation caused by the airstrike. The Israeli military asserted that the operation was aimed at militants believed to be hiding among civilians in the area, although no evidence was presented to support these claims.

Footage from the scene revealed children among the injured, with heartbreaking images of a sobbing man carrying a toddler who had sustained head injuries. Hospital records confirmed that four people were killed and around 40 others injured, with 25 individuals requiring transfer to the Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza due to severe burn injuries.

Despite the ongoing conflict, Israel has continued its airstrikes throughout the Gaza Strip, with near-daily bombardments reported. The military’s rationale for these strikes often centers on the assertion that Hamas operatives are using civilian shelters and tent camps as bases for launching attacks.

This escalation of violence follows a significant attack by Hamas on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people, predominantly civilians. In the wake of that assault, Palestinian militants took around 250 hostages, of which about 100 are believed to still be held in Gaza, with a significant portion presumed dead.

The Israeli response to the Hamas attack has led to devastating casualties in Gaza, with reports indicating that over 42,000 Palestinians have lost their lives, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The precise number of combatants among the dead remains unclear, but it has been noted that women and children account for more than half of the fatalities. Approximately 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million has been displaced, with many individuals forced to flee multiple times as their homes are destroyed.

Israel has mandated the evacuation of the northern third of Gaza, affecting an estimated 400,000 residents, while simultaneously restricting food and humanitarian aid from entering the area. Many individuals from the north had initially complied with evacuation orders issued at the start of the war but have since been unable to return home.

These developments have heightened fears among Palestinians that Israel may implement a strategy to forcibly remove civilians from northern Gaza, categorizing anyone who remains as combatants. Rights groups have condemned this approach as a violation of international law. Although this strategy has been discussed among Israeli military leaders, it remains uncertain whether it has been formally adopted by the government.

The conflict in Gaza is further complicated by ongoing military actions in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah, a group allied with Hamas that has been launching rockets into northern Israel for more than a year. Israeli officials have also signaled their willingness to conduct strikes against Iran in retaliation for ballistic missile attacks, raising concerns about the potential for a wider regional conflict.

In a separate incident, Hezbollah executed an aerial attack on an Israeli army base in northern Israel that resulted in the deaths of four Israeli soldiers and severe injuries to seven others. This strike was the deadliest carried out by Hezbollah since Israel initiated its ground invasion of Lebanon nearly two weeks prior. Hezbollah characterized this assault as retaliation for Israeli airstrikes on Beirut that had killed 22 individuals, claiming to target Israel’s elite Golani brigade and launching numerous missiles to distract Israeli air defense systems during their operation involving drones.

The Israeli national rescue service reported that the drone and missile attack wounded 61 people, marking an unusual occurrence given the effectiveness of Israel’s advanced air defense systems.