Israeli airstrike on southern Gaza hospital kills 15, hospital says
Deir al-Balah(Gaza Strip) (AP): An Israeli strike hit a southern Gaza's main hospital Monday, killing 15 people according to hospital records.
The victims on the fourth floor of Nasser Hospital were killed when one missile hit and was followed in the same spot by another missile moments later as rescue crews arrived, the ministry said.
Khan Younis' Nasser Hospital, the largest in southern Gaza, has withstood raids and bombardment throughout 22 months of war, with officials citing critical shortages of supplies and staff.
Among the 15 killed were four journalists including 33-year-old Mariam Dagga, a visual journalist who had worked for The Associated Press since the start of the war.
Dagga was a freelancer who recently reported on Nasser Hospital doctors struggling to save children with no prior health issues who were dying or wasting away from starvation. Al Jazeera and Reuters also confirmed their journalists and freelancers were among those killed.
The Israel-Hamas war has been one of the bloodiest conflicts for media workers, with a total of 192 journalists killed in Gaza in the 22-month conflict, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Neither Israel's military nor the Prime Minister's office immediately responded to questions about the strike.
In addition to the 15 killed at Nasser Hospital, hospital officials in northern Gaza also reported deaths from strikes and gunfire along the route to aid sites. Three Palestinians, including a child, were killed in a strike on a neighbourhood in Gaza City, where Israel is preparing for a broader ground invasion in the coming days, Shifa Hospital said.
Al-Awda Hospital reported six aid-seekers trying to reach a distribution point in central Gaza were killed by Israeli gunfire in an incident that also wounded 15. Israel's military did not immediately respond to a question about the aid seekers.
Israeli strikes and raids on hospitals are not uncommon. Multiple hospitals have been struck or raided across the Gaza Strip, with Israel claiming its attacks had targeted Hamas operating inside the medical facilities, without providing evidence.
A June strike on Nasser Hospital killed three people and wounded 10, according to the health ministry. At the time, Israel's military said it had targeted Hamas operating from a command and control centre inside the hospital. A March strike on the hospital's surgical unit days after a ceasefire broke down killed two people.
The health ministry said Sunday that at least 62,686 Palestinians have been killed in the war. It does not distinguish between fighters and civillians but says around half have been women and children. The UN and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.
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Two held for 'firing' at BJP leader's house in Bengal
Kolkata (PTI): A day before the counting of votes for the West Bengal assembly elections, two persons were arrested on Sunday for allegedly being involved in a firing incident outside the residence of a BJP leader in North 24 Parganas district, police said.
BJP leader Kundan Singh lodged a police complaint, alleging that a few gunmen fired at his house in the Noapara constituency around Saturday midnight.
Based on the CCTV footage, the two accused were apprehended, a senior officer said.
BJP's Noapara candidate Arjun Singh, in a post on social media, claimed that around 12.05 am, two armed miscreants arrived on a motorcycle at the residence of Kundan Singh, a BJP functionary and secretary of the Barrackpore organisational district, with an "intent to kill him".
According to the BJP leader, the accused are residents of Garulia and are known criminals.
Their names as offenders had been submitted to the Election Commission, he said.
The police officer did not specify whether the two arrested persons were the same individuals named by Arjun Singh.
According to the complaint, one round of firing took place outside Kundan Singh's house, triggering panic in the area.
The BJP candidate also questioned the role of the police, claiming that one of the accused had been detained by the police on the polling day but was later released in the evening.
The Noapara assembly seat went to the polls on April 29.
Several BJP leaders alleged that attempts were being made to create an atmosphere of fear ahead of the counting and weaken the organisation of the opposition parties.
The counting of votes will take place on May 4. Polling for the West Bengal assembly elections was held on April 23 and April 29.
The BJP urged the Election Commission to intervene immediately to ensure peaceful counting.
TMC candidate Somnath Shyam rubbished Arjun Singh’s allegation, claiming that the BJP nominee had orchestrated the firing incident to divert attention from imminent defeat.
“Arjun Singh knows all the gangsters in the Barrackpore belt. Everyone knows about his links with the underworld. Let the police investigate the incident,” Shyam said.
