Gaza health ministry urges Rafah opening as Israeli strikes kill two
The ministry says dozens of patients have died waiting to leave Gaza for treatment, as Israeli attacks continue despite a ceasefire.
At a glance
- An Israeli drone strike on a civilian car in Maghazi camp in central Gaza killed two Palestinians and wounded others, one critically.
- Gaza's Health Ministry says 21,468 patients and wounded people need treatment abroad, including 6,430 priority cases.
- The ministry says repeated border closures have left dozens dead while waiting for permission to leave Gaza.
At least two Palestinians were killed on Thursday when an Israeli drone fired two missiles in quick succession at a civilian car in the middle of the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al Jazeera's Ashraf Abu Amra, reporting from Deir el-Balah.
The wounded were taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where they were treated in operating theatres or admitted to intensive care. One of them is in critical condition, Abu Amra said, adding that the strike came without prior warning and that Israeli aircraft were flying at low altitude across the territory.
Separately, an Israeli strike in Jabalia, in northern Gaza, wounded a Palestinian who was taken to al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
Attacks described as continuing at a "very high pace"
Abu Amra said the attacks were escalating east of Jabalia in the Halawa camp, one of the largest displacement camps in the north, where Israeli forces positioned along the edges of the so-called "Yellow Line" have begun firing directly at tents sheltering displaced families.
In eastern Gaza City, explosions were heard in the Shujayea, Tuffah and Zeitoun neighbourhoods after Israeli artillery shelling. Israeli forces are also carrying out large-scale demolitions in areas under their control behind the "Yellow Line" — including east of Deir el-Balah, Khan Younis and Gaza City, and in Beit Lahiya in the north — destroying homes and what remains of local infrastructure.
On Thursday morning, four Palestinians were buried at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis after being killed in an Israeli drone strike in the al-Mawasi area of Rafah, close to the Rafah and Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossings. Abu Amra said the victims were civilian employees of the Ministry of Economy who monitor aid trucks entering through Karem Abu Salem. More than 30 others were wounded, according to Al Jazeera's Moath al-Kahlout.
Al-Kahlout also reported that 11 people, including women and children, were wounded when Israeli artillery struck a house east of Gaza City, citing emergency services.
Gaza's Health Ministry said on Thursday that six Palestinians had been killed and 38 wounded over the previous 24 hours.
Ministry renews call to open Rafah
The ministry renewed its call for the Rafah crossing to be opened so that sick and wounded Palestinians can leave the territory for treatment. It said 21,468 patients and wounded people need to travel for care outside Gaza, including 6,430 identified as priority cases.
The ministry blamed repeated border closures and what it described as deliberate delays in evacuation procedures for worsening patients' conditions, saying dozens had died while waiting for permission to leave and that the health of thousands more had seriously deteriorated.
Since February, 3,056 patients and wounded people have been evacuated for treatment abroad, the ministry said: 2,614 through Rafah, which connects Gaza with Egypt, and 442 through the Karem Abu Salem crossing with Israel.
Source: Al Jazeera.
Questions and answers
- What happened in Gaza on Thursday?
- Israeli drone and artillery strikes hit central and northern Gaza, including Maghazi camp where two Palestinians were killed, and the al-Mawasi area of Rafah where four were killed.
- Why is Gaza's Health Ministry calling for the Rafah crossing to open?
- The ministry says 21,468 patients and wounded people need care outside Gaza, and that border closures and evacuation delays have caused dozens of deaths and worsened thousands of patients.
- How many patients have been evacuated from Gaza?
- Since February, 3,056 patients and wounded people have left for treatment abroad — 2,614 through Rafah and 442 through the Karem Abu Salem crossing, according to the Health Ministry.
