One of the dead was a surgeon identified as Dr. Rizk Abu Shaira, 52, whose name is also spelled Rizq Abu Shaeria. A 13-year-old boy was also among those killed, according to one account of the toll. That account puts the number of wounded at 40, including two doctors in critical condition, well above the ministry's figure. The Palestinian Ministry of Health says two missiles hit the hospital's Yassin building and that one has not detonated and remains inside. One account says footage from the scene showed a US-made GBU-39/B 250-pound bomb, one of which failed to explode.

A journalist at the scene reported that parts of the second floor were destroyed and that the surgical wing was heavily damaged. The ministry says debris was scattered across beds and equipment. Mohammed Salman, a nurse at the hospital, gave testimony shared by the aid group Medical Aid for Palestine. He said the attack came at about 00:39 local time and that patients and colleagues he had been caring for were killed.

The Israeli military says it targeted "a senior Hamas terrorist" and other militants. The military and the Israel Security Agency named the target as Muhammad Abu Ismail, whom they describe as commander of Hamas' Khan Younis Brigade and say planned attacks on Israeli forces and civilians. They say Hamas set up a "command center for military and terrorist activities" in the hospital complex. They say it was used to launch attacks, store weapons, and hold interrogations that involved torture, and they released photos of what they describe as weapons found on site. The military says it used precision munitions and aerial surveillance to reduce harm to civilians and that it is investigating the reported deaths. At least one report noted that no evidence was provided for the Israeli claims about the target. Whether Abu Ismail was killed has not been confirmed; one news organization says it has asked the military to confirm his death and to explain its civilian protection measures.

Hamas rejected the Israeli account as "lies of the criminal enemy" and called the strike a "war crime."

The strike came during a US-backed ceasefire that took effect in October 2025. Nasser Hospital is one of the few functioning medical facilities in Gaza, and Medical Aid for Palestine says this is the seventh time Israeli forces have targeted it. A 2025 strike on the same hospital killed five journalists, including the contributor Mariam Dagga. Israel has previously raided or besieged other Gaza hospitals, saying Hamas uses them as command centers, and has destroyed medical equipment and killed or detained healthcare workers.

Counts of Palestinians killed since the ceasefire range from more than 1,400 to 1,622, depending on the source. Counts of how many of Gaza's 37 hospitals still work also differ, from none fully functioning to two. The war began on October 7, 2023, when a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel killed about 1,200 people and took roughly 250 hostages. The Gaza health ministry says more than 74,600 people have been killed in Gaza since then, and Israel now controls at least 60% of the territory.