Israel bombards Gaza seeking to kill top Hamas leader, officials say
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People and traffic passing the fence of the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, which was hit in an Israeli strike at dawn that targeted the Gaza Strip city on May 13.
PHOTO: AFP
Ronan Bergman, Patrick Kingsley, Adam Rasgon, Aaron Boxerman and Julian E. Barnes
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TEL AVIV, Israel – Israeli fighter jets bombed the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis on the evening of May 13 in an attempt to kill Muhammad Sinwar, one of Hamas’ remaining top leaders in the enclave, according to three Israeli officials.
All three officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.
Around the same time, the Israeli military said its forces had struck a Hamas command centre underneath the European Hospital near Khan Younis. An Israeli military spokesperson declined to say whether Sinwar had been targeted in that strike.
The Health Ministry in Gaza said that at least six people had been killed in the strike on the hospital, with at least 40 others wounded.
Pillars of smoke billowed around the hospital after the bombardment, according to videos from the scene that were verified by The New York Times. It was unclear whether hospital buildings had been damaged in the strike.
Dr Saleh al-Hams, a doctor at the European Hospital, said the bombing had shaken the compound, terrifying the doctors and patients within. “All of our appeals to the world were for nothing,” he said in a phone call.
Israeli officials have accused Hamas of operating from inside Gaza’s hospitals – claims corroborated by some Palestinians in Gaza, as well as some former Israeli hostages who have said they were held there. Hamas, as well as hospital officials, has denied the allegations.
Israel has threatened another major military offensive in the Gaza Strip unless Hamas lays down its weapons and turns over the 20 living hostages it still holds, along with the remains of around 40 others. Hamas leaders have refused to disarm, adding that they will not release the captives unless Israel ends the war.
Sinwar is believed to be one of the most senior Hamas military commanders left in Gaza after more than a year and a half of the devastating war with Israel. He is the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader killed by Israeli forces last year
