Daijiworld Media Network- Gaza

Gaza, Aug 27: A deadly strike on Gaza’s Nasser Hospital that killed at least 20 people, including five journalists, has triggered widespread outrage, even as the Israeli military defended the action, saying its forces were aiming at a Hamas surveillance camera placed near the medical facility.

In a statement posted on X, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that troops from the Golani Brigade, operating in the Khan Yunis area, had identified a camera installed by Hamas to monitor Israeli military movements and help direct terrorist attacks. “The troops operated to remove the threat by striking and dismantling the camera,” the IDF said, citing Hamas’s documented history of using hospitals for military purposes throughout the nearly two-year-long Gaza war.

The IDF also claimed that six of those killed were confirmed Hamas members, including one alleged participant in the October 7, 2023, cross-border assault that ignited the current conflict. Those named were Jum’a Khaled Jum’a al-Najjar, Hisham Tayseer Ibrahim Quweder, Imad Abd al-Hakim Ali al-Shaer, Muhammad Ahmad Salem Abu Hadaf, Salah Yusuf Muhsin Barbakh, and Omar Kamal Shahada Abu Teim.

At the same time, the Chief of the General Staff has ordered a review into potential lapses in authorization and decision-making processes that led to the strike, which has drawn sharp international condemnation.

Meanwhile, an Israeli military official told the Associated Press that both strikes on the hospital were carried out by a tank. The back-to-back attacks — often referred to as “double taps” — have previously been criticized in conflicts such as Ukraine and Syria, especially when they hit civilians or medical responders rushing to assist the wounded.

Israel has faced repeated accusations of targeting hospitals during the 22-month war in Gaza, with the military insisting that Hamas systematically uses such facilities and their surroundings as cover for its operations.