The Guardian view on Gaza’s misery: don’t let Palestinian deaths mount in this bleak winter | Editorial

The formation of a new Israeli government won’t stop the killing, but sustained international pressure must be applied

What do you call a ceasefire when the firing has not ceased? The killings in Gaza decreased when the truce was announced last October, but they did not end. Israel’s strike on Thursday morning on one of the few remaining functioning hospitals, which killed six people and wounded 28 more, was the first on a healthcare facility since then. But it was not an anomaly. About four Palestinians a day have died on average since the ceasefire was declared.

The Israeli military said that it had struck a Hamas commander and other fighters in the attack on Nasser hospital, without providing evidence. Its record does not inspire confidence in the accuracy of its account. Multiple UN experts and health campaigners have warned of the deliberate targeting of medical facilities and healthcare workers. Israeli military personnel have also described the shockingly high level of civilian deaths tolerated as “collateral damage” in targeting even low-level fighters after the brutal Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.

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