Israeli strike hits Qatari Red Crescent in Gaza

An Israeli air strike hit the Qatari Red Crescent offices in Gaza on Monday.

The office was attacked "by the Israeli occupation forces", the organisation said in a tweet. 

"The Qatar Red Crescent condemns the targeting of its headquarters in Gaza [and] reaffirms the need to allow relief teams to work in accordance with international humanitarian law."

The organisation’s Secretary-General Ali bin Hassan Al-Hammadi said the strike violates the Geneva Convention - a delineation of international law pertaining to armed conflicts to which Israel is a signatory.

Qatar’s foreign ministry also condemned the Israeli attack of the Red Crescent Society Building, stating "the targeting of humanitarian and media institutions is a clear violation of international law, humanitarian norms and values".

On the same day, the health ministry of Gaza said one of its buildings and a clinic housing the enclave's only Covid-19 laboratory was hit.

The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting Tuesday amid a flurry of urgent diplomacy aimed at stemming Israeli air strikes that have killed more than 200 Palestinians. https://t.co/g348hB7L1T

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) May 18, 2021

Ministry spokesman Ashraf Qidra said the Israeli strikes "threaten to undermine the efforts of the health ministry in the face of the Covid pandemic".

Israel's army said Monday it had hit the homes of nine "high-ranking" Hamas commanders overnight, a day after bombing the house of Yahya Sinwar, head of the group's political wing. It gave no details of any casualties.

In the Gaza Strip, 1,225 Palestinians have been wounded by the Israeli airstrikes and artillery bombing, while in the West Bank, 4,363 Palestinians have been wounded by Israeli forces or armed Jewish settlers.

The violence between Hamas and Israel is the worst since 2014, when Israel launched a military operation on the Gaza Strip with the stated aim of ending rocket fire and destroying tunnels used for smuggling.