“Forgive me, mother. This is the path I chose - to help people. God is Great."
Claiming it held a "command and control center used by Hamas," the Jews chose Palm Sunday to bomb the only Christian hospital left in genocide-shattered Gaza. It
was also the last fully-functioning hospital in Gaza City. No
casualties from the bombing per se were reported by Gaza's civil
emergency service. However, a child who'd been hospitalized for a head wound died
from "the rushed evacuation process," said the Episcopal Diocese of
Jerusalem, which runs the al Ahli Arab Hospital. The diocese is part of
the Anglican Church.Citing Gaza Civil Defense, Middle East Eye reports that the bombs resulted in “the destruction of the surgery building and the oxygen generation station for the intensive care units.” St. Philip's Church was one of multiple nearby buildings that also suffered damage. The IDF attributed the low casualty count to its effort to "mitigate harm to civilians or to the hospital compound, including issuing advanced warnings in the area of the terror infrastructure, the use of precise munitions, and aerial surveillance."
A local journalist told BBC that the IDF called an emergency room doctor and urged the hospital's immediate evacuation, saying "You have only 20 minutes to leave." A previously-injured Khalil Bakr said he and his three wounded daughters -- two amputees and a third "full of platinum plates" -- managed to get out of the hospital just a couple minutes before destruction rained down.
"For the only Christian hospital in Gaza to be attacked on Palm Sunday is especially appalling," said British Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell in a statement. "I share in the grief of our Palestinian brothers and sisters in the Diocese of Jerusalem. I pray for the staff and patients of the hospital, and for the family of the boy who tragically died during the evacuation."
The British government joined the condemnation, with Foreign Minister David Lammy saying the "deplorable attacks must end...Israel's attacks on medical facilities have comprehensively degraded access to healthcare in Gaza." Before the attack, the hospital stood alone as the only one still fully functioning in Gaza City, after Israel blew up the Al-Shifa Hospital and others.
The Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem issued its own statement:
“This hospital, already strained by months of siege, stood as one of the last beacons of medical hope in Gaza, where dozens of healthcare institutions have been systematically destroyed. The stripping away of such sanctuaries of life and dignity is a tragedy that transcends all boundaries of politics and enters the realm of the sacred.”
While the British government and many other entities have decried the attack, there's been no official statement from the Israel-catering Trump administration.
Previous IDF claims of hospitals being used as Hamas facilities have grown suspect under scrutiny, with credible accusations of the IDF staging evidence before ushering in journalists to see the "proof." Throughout the war that's raged since the Oct 7 Hamas invasion of southern Israel, the IDF has repeatedly bombed medical facilities and fired on ambulances.
One of the most troubling such incidents came last month, when 14 medical and other aid workers were found in a mass grave in Gaza after the IDF destroyed a convoy of ambulances and other first-response vehicles. The IDF originally claimed the vehicles "were identified advancing suspiciously" without either their headlights or emergency lights on. Then cell phone video of the IDF attack captured by one of the slain ambulance crew members proved the IDF account was completely false. The vehicles' headlights and emergency lights were on, and the vehicles carried clear markings of their nature.
As withering IDF gunfire rakes over the first responders, the dying Palestinian video narrator can be heard reciting the Shahada, the Muslim declaration of faith: "There is no God but God, Muhammad is his messenger." Then, perhaps anticipating the video may be recovered after his murder by the Jewish Green Shirts, he said, “Forgive me, mother. This is the path I chose -- to help people. God is Great."
Compilation of news reports – IAK staff
At least 37 Palestinians were killed in fresh Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip on Sunday amid relentless attacks on the enclave, medics said. Among the dead were six brothers, killed when an Israeli drone struck a vehicle in Deir al-Balah.
A US strike in Yemen’s Sanaa province killed five people and wounded more than a dozen others.
Israel airstrike destroys Gaza City’s Baptist Hospital
The Israeli army bombed the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City with two missiles early on 13 April, destroying the intensive care and surgery departments and rendering the facility out of service.
The Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital is the last functioning medical facility in Gaza City. Video footage from after the strike showed heavy destruction.
“The emergency, trauma, laboratory, pharmacy, and emergency radiology departments were the most affected by the Israeli bombing,” said the hospital’s director. “The hospital has gone out of service due to the Israeli bombing,” he added, stressing the need for pressure on Israel to allow aid into Gaza needed to resume health services and calling for the protection of hospitals.
A child at the hospital who had previously sustained a head injury died during the frantic evacuation of the hospital.
The Israeli army claimed it targeted a Hamas military site under the hospital.
“The [army] and Shin Bet attacked a command-and-control complex in the northern Gaza Strip inside the Al-Ahli hospital that was used by the Hamas terrorist organization. The complex was used by the organization’s terrorists to plan and execute terrorist plots against [our] forces and citizens of the State of Israel,” said a joint statement.
The Civil Defense in Gaza said “occupation’s accounts of the presence of armed men inside the Baptist Hospital are incorrect,” adding that they “did not witness any signs” of what Israel claimed.
The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, which manages al-Ahli hospital, said in a statement Sunday that it condemned the attack “in the strongest possible terms.”
Founded in 1882 and operated by the Anglican Episcopal Church in Jerusalem, Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital is one of Gaza’s oldest medical institutions.
NOTE: When Israel feels obliged to explain its airstrikes (often it doesn’t even bother), it uses essentially the same words, “the site was a Hamas command and control center”; often followed by, “many steps were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians,” and a note that it used “precise” munitions.
But Israel has yet to provide a shred of evidence to back up its claims;
attacks are often carried out without warning to civilians to evacuate,
and frequently cause massive damage and loss of life. (More here.)
Red Crescent reports paramedic held by Israeli authorities💥 Israeli warplanes struck Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in central Gaza, forcing it out of service
— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) April 13, 2025
💢 Two missiles hit the reception area, heavily damaging the emergency ward, lab, and pharmacy
🚑 Patients were evacuated amid continued airstrikes on the besieged enclave… pic.twitter.com/2SouIv6aNl
The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) announced that a staff member is being held by Israeli authorities.
PRCS medic Assad al-Nsasrah was targeted along with other colleagues during a humanitarian mission in Rafah, southern Gaza.
At the end of March, the PRCS reported that eight paramedics were killed while attempting to rescue victims following an earlier Israeli strike. Nsasrah’s fate had remained unknown since the targeted attack on the medical team.
“We call on the international community to pressure the occupation authorities to immediately release our colleague, medic Asaad, who was forcibly abducted while carrying out his humanitarian duties,” PRCS said in a post on X.
“He and his colleagues came under heavy gunfire, which led to the killing of eight of them – a grave violation of international humanitarian law.”
West Bank Christians mark Palm Sunday as Israel blocks access to Jerusalem
Christians in the occupied West Bank marked Palm Sunday with limited religious rituals, as the Israeli army prevented most worshippers from reaching Jerusalem to celebrate at holy sites.
In cities such as Bethlehem, Jericho, Ramallah, Nablus, and Jenin, churches following the Eastern, Western, and Armenian calendars restricted Palm Sunday celebrations to masses and prayers only.
For the second consecutive year, the festive spirit was absent due to the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, where more than 50,900 people have been killed, mostly women and children, since October 2023.
In Jerusalem, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III, Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and other church leaders presided over Palm Sunday services at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City, attended by bishops, priests, monks, and nuns, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
However, the Israeli army denied access to thousands of West Bank Christians seeking to attend the celebrations in Jerusalem.
Wafa reported that only a limited number of worshippers, mostly from Jerusalem and Israeli Arabs, were allowed in. Israeli forces issued only 6,000 permits for West Bank Christians, although the population exceeds 50,000.
Violence against Christians in the Holy Land during 2024
Vatican News: The annual report on attacks against Christians in the Holy Land was presented on Monday evening in Jerusalem.
It was prepared by the Rossing Center, the organization for peace and interreligious dialogue that for years has monitored the escalation of violence against Christians living in Israel and Palestine through its JCJCR program (Jerusalem Center for Jewish Christian Relations).
There were 111 attacks or acts of violence recorded in 2024 against Christians, including but not limited to attacks against clergy. Most attacks targeted individuals, but 35 cases involved vandalism against churches, monasteries, and public religious signs.
In nearly all cases, the perpetrators identified were young, ultra-Orthodox Jews belonging to circles of religious-nationalist extremism.
The growing influence of religious-nationalist extremism in Israeli government policy has fostered an environment of constant threat for religious minorities, and particularly for Christians.
In a survey conducted by the Rossing Center, 48% of Christian youth under the age of 30 interviewed said they were considering leaving the region and migrating.
Around 77% of them stated that the main reason was the escalating discrimination and violence suffered by Christians, along with the overall deterioration of the socio-political situation.
RELATED: Gaza pastor: ‘We live in a cage’
School children flee scene of Israeli military raid in Hebron
A military raid in the Al-Fawwar refugee camp in Hebron, in the occupied West Bank, triggered panic amongst children returning home from school. The footage shows them rushing away from the incursions.
Israeli raids have been reported across the occupied West Bank, with ongoing incursions especially targeting camps.
Record-breaking U.S. Deployment in Middle East Amid Trump’s Nuclear Ultimatum for IranIsraeli forces stormed the Al-Fawwar refugee camp in Hebron, in the occupied West Bank, just as children were returning home from school. The sudden raid triggered panic, with terrified students seen fleeing in fear as the situation. pic.twitter.com/3Qr2PLYCAX
— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) April 13, 2025
The U.S. military has carried out its largest offensive deployment to the Middle East since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, according to a Haaretz analysis of open-source aviation data.
In recent weeks, Washington has sent squadrons of fighter jets, stealth bombers and large quantities of weaponry to the region – amid its ongoing campaign in Yemen and ahead of the ultimatum issued by President Donald Trump to Iran over its nuclear program.
This new buildup, first reported by Haaretz last week, marks a roughly 50 percent increase over the previous monthly peak in U.S. military flights to the region.
“If they don’t make a deal, there’ll be bombing, it’ll be bombing the likes of which they have never seen before,” Trump said over the weekend. Iran responded that it “will not negotiate under pressure and will know how to respond to any attack” (continue reading here).
NOTE: The US has spent at least $17.9 billion to support Israel’s genocide in direct aid alone. The additional buildup of forces throughout the war on Gaza – to defend Israel against Iranian, Hezbollah, and Houthi threats related to the Palestinian issue – raise the price tag much higher.
The US also wasted hundreds of millions on a “temporary pier” off the Gaza coast in what turned into a debacle and scandal.
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