Israeli Forces Destroy Gaza’s Only Cancer Hospital

• Israeli forces demolished Gaza’s only cancer hospital, citing alleged Hamas use of the site.

• The facility, partly funded by Turkey, had remained intact during the recent ceasefire.

• Human rights groups accuse Israel of systematically targeting Gaza’s health infrastructure.

Israeli forces pushed deeper into the Gaza Strip and demolished the territory’s only cancer treatment hospital, as Israeli leaders vowed to seize more ground until Hamas releases the remaining hostages.

The Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, Gaza’s sole oncology facility, was located in the Netzarim Corridor, a strategic area that cuts the enclave in half and has been under Israeli control for much of the 17-month conflict.

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Israel re-entered the corridor earlier this week after ending a temporary ceasefire with Hamas. That truce, in place since late January, had brought relative calm and led to the release of more than two dozen hostages.

The Israeli military claimed it targeted the hospital because Hamas militants were using the site. Turkey, which financed and helped construct the facility, said Israeli forces had previously occupied the hospital.

Dr. Zaki Al-Zaqzouq, head of the oncology department, said a medical team inspected the site during the truce and found that parts of the hospital were still usable despite earlier damage.

“I cannot fathom what could be gained from bombing a hospital that served as a lifeline for so many patients,” he said in a statement released by Medical Aid for Palestinians.

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Turkey’s Foreign Ministry denounced the attack and accused Israel of attempting to make Gaza “uninhabitable” and to forcibly displace Palestinians.

While international law protects hospitals from military attacks, they can lose that protection if used for military operations. However, any such attack must still meet the test of proportionality. Human rights organizations and UN-backed experts have accused Israel of systematically dismantling Gaza’s health care infrastructure.

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