Israel Accuses Iran of ‘War Crimes’ After Hospital Strike, Vows Retaliation
Israel pledged a fierce escalation in its offensive against Iran after a missile reportedly struck a hospital in the south of the country, prompting senior officials to accuse Tehran of committing “war crimes” and personally blame Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
An early morning missile strike hit Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, Israeli officials said, leaving several people wounded and parts of the facility engulfed in smoke. The blast damaged upper floors, but serious casualties were avoided thanks to a prior evacuation of the affected wing.
The strike came as part of a broader barrage from Iran and triggered fresh outrage from Israel’s political leadership.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the assault, declaring: “We will exact the full price from the tyrants in Tehran.”
Defense Minister Israel Katz went even further, announcing an expansion of Israeli military action beyond strategic infrastructure to include government sites in Tehran itself.
“The prime minister and I instructed the IDF to increase the intensity of the attacks against strategic targets in Iran and against government targets in Tehran in order to remove the threats against the State of Israel and undermine the regime of the ayatollahs,” Katz said in an X post.
He accused Iran of committing “war crimes of the most serious kind,” asserting that “Ayatollah Khamenei will be held accountable for his crimes.”
In response, Iran insisted its intended target was an Israeli military intelligence site near the hospital, not the civilian facility itself. According to the BBC, Iran argued that any damage to the hospital was caused by the blast wave, not a direct hit. But Israeli officials dismissed the claim, citing the damage to critical medical infrastructure and injuries to civilians.
Across the region, the strikes intensified an already volatile conflict. In central Israel, a missile pierced through air defence systems and struck a residential high-rise near Tel Aviv, trapping people in their apartments.
Meanwhile the Israeli military reported that it struck nuclear sites in Bushehr, Isfahan and Natanz in Iran while continuing to attack other facilities.
Watch above via Sky News.
