Israeli airstrike on Gaza hospital tent camp kills 2 Palestinians
Palestinians mourn over the body of a child killed in Israeli bombardment the night before, the European hospital, Khan Yunis, Gaza Strip, Palestine, March 29, 2024. (AFP Photo)


An Israeli airstrike hit a tent camp within Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza, on Sunday, killing two Palestinians and injuring 15 others.

The strike targeted one of several tents in the hospital's courtyard, where thousands have sought shelter after fleeing their homes in the war-torn region.

Journalists working from nearby tents witnessed the strike and its aftermath, with no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

Israeli troops have been conducting raids in Gaza's hospitals, including Shifa Hospital, Gaza's largest, accusing Hamas and other groups of operating in and around medical facilities.

Palestinian families who fled from the area, including many who had already been displaced earlier in the war, say they were ordered to march south by Israeli soldiers after days of heavy fighting.

Only a third of Gaza's hospitals are even partially functioning, even as Israeli strikes kill and wound scores of people every day.

Doctors say they are often forced to treat patients on hospital floors because all the beds are taken and to operate without anesthetics and other crucial medical supplies.

An international team of doctors who had recently visited Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where Sunday's strike occurred, said they were horrified by the war's gruesome impact on Palestinian children.

The war began following Hamas' Oct. 7 incursion on southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking with them 250 hostages back to Gaza.

Over 100 captives were freed last year in exchange for the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

Israel responded to the assault with one of the deadliest and most destructive military campaigns in recent history, one that has driven around 80% of Gaza's population of 2.3 million from their homes.

The United Nations and partners have warned that famine could occur in devastated, largely isolated northern Gaza as early as this month.

Humanitarian officials say deliveries by sea and air are not enough and that Israel must allow far more aid by road.

The top U.N. court has ordered Israel to open more land crossings and take other measures to address the crisis.

Gaza's Health Ministry reported on Sunday that the death toll among Palestinians has reached at least 32,782 since the war began.

Among the dead, approximately two-thirds are women and children.

Additionally, 77 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours.

The U.S., Qatar and Egypt have been trying to broker another cease-fire and hostage release since January.

Hamas is demanding that any such agreement lead to an end to the war and the withdrawal of all Israeli forces.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected those demands and says Israel will keep fighting until it has destroyed Hamas.

But he is under growing pressure to reach a deal from families of the hostages, some of whom have joined mass demonstrations calling for early elections to replace him.

The cease-fire talks resumed in Cairo on Sunday, with little expectation of any breakthrough.