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Israel is facing global condemnation after 20 people were killed in an attack on a hospital in Gaza, as domestic protests calling for a ceasefire, led by families of hostages taken by Hamas, swept the country.
The victims on the fourth floor of Nasser Hospital were killed in a double-tap strike, with one missile hitting first, then another moments later as rescue crews arrived, an eyewitness told The Independent.
The attack, in which five journalists were killed – including Maryam Abu Daqqa, who worked for The Independent’s sister site Independent Arabia – was among the deadliest to have hit journalists over the course of the war.
The US, the European Union, Canada, Britain, Egypt, China, France, and Spain denounced the attack, while Germany called for an investigation.
The Israeli military said after its initial investigation that the strike aimed to take out a Hamas surveillance camera, along with several people it claimed were militants belonging to the group.
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Israel is facing global condemnation and domestic protests after its deadly Gaza hospital strike(Reuters)
The military said it had established that none of the five journalists killed were among the six Hamas targets it says were killed in the two strikes, and that the journalists were not suspected of being militants. The military claimed that they were not the target of the strikes.
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The chief of general staff acknowledged several “gaps” in the investigation so far, including in relation to the kind of ammunition that was used to take out the camera. A further inquiry has been ordered into how the decision was made to target the hospital.
The US president, Donald Trump, said: “I’m not happy about it. I don’t want to see it. At the same time, we have to end that whole nightmare.”
He added that a “very serious” diplomatic push to end the war is underway, and that there may be a “conclusive ending” in Gaza in the coming weeks, but he did not offer any further details.
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Our front page this morning(Independent)
Britain’s foreign secretary David Lammy said he was “horrified” by the attack and called for an “immediate ceasefire”.
Separately, Israeli protesters across the country have blocked major highways as they continue to demand the release of the people taken hostage by Hamas on 7 October 2023.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum started their “national day of struggle” at 6.29am local time, the same time as Hamas launched their attack two years ago.
“Advancing the plan to conquer Gaza while there is an agreement lying on the table for the prime minister’s signature is a stab in the heart of the families and the entire nation,” said Itzik Horn, father of Eitan Horn and captivity survivor Iair Horn.
Footage shared online shows traffic grinding to a halt as a large fire blazed across parts of a road between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
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Protesters across Israel blocked major highways(Reuters)
The coastal highway on the outskirts of Tel Aviv was also closed to traffic around Yakum junction.
Demonstrators plan to march from Savidor station in Tel Aviv to “hostages square” for a large rally this evening, the forum told media.
The forum is directly appealing to Mr Trump to finalise a ceasefire deal and return the hostages. Israel believes 20 of the hostages are still alive.
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(L-R) Hussam al-Masri, Maryam Abu Daqqa, Moaz Abu Taha, Mohammed Salama, and Ahmad Abu Aziz(Reuters)
A joint letter to Israel, AP and Reuters said: “We are outraged that independent journalists were among the victims of this strike on the hospital, a location that is protected under international law. These journalists were present in their professional capacity, doing critical work bearing witness.”
The five journalists who were killed in the attack included cameraman Hussam al-Masri, who worked for ; photographer Mohammed Salama, who worked for Al Jazeera; Independent Arabia’s Maryam Abu Daqqa; Moaz Abu Taha, who worked for NBC; and Ahmad Abu Aziz, a journalist with Palestinian youth news agency Quds Feed Network, the Palestinian government media office said. A rescue worker was also among those killed, health officials added.
An Israeli military spokesperson claimed that the army does not target civilians and that it had launched an internal investigation into the strikes.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces launched a rare daytime raid on Tuesday in the heart of the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is headquartered. Dozens of Palestinians were wounded, according to local medics.
Israel has attacked hospitals numerous times throughout the war, claiming that Hamas embeds itself in and around the facilities.
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The body of freelance journalist Maryam Abu Daqqa is carried for burial after she was killed in an Israeli strike(Family handout)
The latest attack followed Israel’s plans to widen its offensive to heavily populated areas in an attempt to destroy Hamas.
Israeli defence minister Israel Katz has vowed to press on with the offensive against Gaza City, despite alarm abroad and objections at home.
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A sixth journalist, Palestinian correspondent Hassan Douhan, was killed in a separate incident in Khan Younis in the south of Gaza, Al Jazeera reported.
More than 62,000 Palestinians have died since 7 October, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Around 1,200 people were killed by Hamas in its initial attack, and around 250 were taken hostage.