Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis kills at least six, injures more than 20

Strike on the Nasser Medical Complex

An Israeli air attack hit the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, in the early hours of Thursday, 12 November. Medical sources cited by the Palestinian agency Sanad said the strike hit the surgery department on the second floor of the complex's Yassin building. Patients, medical staff and people accompanying them were among those wounded, and the Civil Defence said more than 20 people were hurt. Gaza's Civil Defence, a rescue service operating under Hamas authority, said the bodies of those killed and of the wounded had been recovered from a building inside the complex. Its spokesman, Mahmoud Bassal, said the death toll had risen to six. Nasser Hospital confirmed the six deaths in its own statement, and hospital staff named a 13-year-old boy and a 52-year-old doctor among the dead.

Differing early counts and Israel's response

The early figures differ between outlets. The Arabic-language newspaper Al-Kuds, citing a Civil Defence spokesman, reported at least four dead and several injured in the night, and it said Israeli forces had directly targeted the complex's second floor. Those claims could not be independently verified, and they predate the higher toll of six. The Israeli military had not made an official statement when the reports came out. Asked for comment, it told the New York Times it would soon have information, and it told the Spanish news agency AFP that it was checking the reports. Israel and Hamas have accused each other of breaching the ceasefire that took effect in October 2025, after two years of war that began with the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.

Repeated strikes and the ceasefire toll

Al Jazeera, as cited by La Repubblica, says this is the seventh time in two years that the same hospital has been targeted. The deadliest of those attacks came on 25 August 2025, when the hospital was bombed twice and at least 22 people were killed, including at least four journalists. On Tuesday, 10 November, local emergency services said Israeli forces had killed seven people in Gaza, including a 13-year-old boy, while the Israeli military said it had targeted 'military operatives'. The Gaza Ministry of Health, whose figures the UN considers reliable, says more than 1,590 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire began. The Israeli military reported seven soldiers and one civilian contractor killed over the same period. Ministry data cited by Deutsche Welle put total Palestinian deaths in the war above 74,500, while stern.de reports more than 74,600.

Humanitarian pressure

The UN has raised fresh alarm about Gaza's population, which was already exposed to critical sanitary conditions before heavy rains in the days before 12 November. More than 150,000 tents bought by humanitarian partners are ready for distribution but remain outside the Strip, blocked by Israeli authorities, according to UN spokesman Farhan Haq. The UN has called for all crossings to be opened and for entry of aid, fuel and machinery to be authorised. Medecins Sans Frontieres warned in a statement that people cannot endure a fourth winter in these inhumane conditions, and it urged governments to act now to guarantee safe and dignified shelter.