UN calls for justice after Israeli strike on Gaza hospital

The United Nations human rights office has called for justice after at least 20 people, including five journalists, were killed in a double Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza.

“These journalists are the eyes and the ears of the whole world, and they must be protected. There needs to be justice. We have not seen results or accountability measures yet,” said Thameen Al-Kheetan, a spokesperson for the UN human rights office in Geneva.

The first blast at the hospital happened around 10:00 on Monday, with a second ten minutes later, as medics and journalists rushed there. Freelance photographer Moaz Abu Taha, trying to help an injured colleague, was killed, along with Reuters photojournalist Hussam al-Masri and Dr Mohammed, described as “one of the most brilliant doctors”.

Global leaders have condemned the strikes, with French President Emmanuel Macron calling them “intolerable” and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy saying he was “horrified”. Media freedom groups also issued intense criticism.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced an investigation into the strikes and called them a “tragic mishap”.

In Israel, protests have spread across the country as families of hostages held by Hamas demand a ceasefire and the safe return of their relatives. Thousands joined what they called a “day of disruption”, burning tyres and blocking roads in Petah Tikva, Yakum, and Tel Aviv. Some protesters waved Israeli flags outside the US Embassy, urging US President Donald Trump to help secure a deal.

Protesters accuse the government of failing to secure agreements to free the hostages. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum say trust in authorities is collapsing, citing a Tel Aviv University survey showing public confidence has dropped to 23%.

Since Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack, which killed 1,200 and took 251 hostage, Israel’s military strike has killed 62,819 Palestinians, Hamas-run health ministry reports.

In the past 24 hours, 75 more people were reported killed, with many still missing under rubble. The ministry says three died from starvation as famine deepens in Gaza City, a situation called a “failure of humanity” by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

Israel has rejected a proposal from regional mediators for a 60-day truce, saying it will only agree to a whole deal that brings home all the hostages and ends the war on its own terms.