21,468 Gaza Patients Await Border Crossing

21,468 patients and wounded people in Gaza require medical treatment outside the territory, according to a statement from the local Health Ministry on Thursday. Of that total, 6,430 are identified as priority cases who cannot wait for standard processing times.

The ministry renewed its call for the Rafah crossing to open so these patients can leave for care. It attributed recent deteriorations in patient health to repeated border closures and deliberate delays in evacuation procedures. The statement noted that dozens of people have died while waiting for permission to exit the strip.

New violence occurred on Thursday as Israeli strikes continued at a high pace across the territory. Two Palestinians were killed in a drone attack in the center of Gaza. Al Jazeera’s Ashraf Abu Amra reported from Deir el-Balah that an Israeli drone fired two missiles in quick succession at a civilian car in the Maghazi refugee camp.

The victims were transported to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Medical staff rushed the injured into operating theatres or admitted them to intensive care. Abu Amra stated that one patient remained in critical condition. He described the strike as sudden and without prior warning, adding that Israeli aircraft are flying at low altitude across all areas of the strip.

In northern Gaza, an earlier strike in Jabalia wounded one Palestinian who was taken to al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Abu Amra also reported escalating attacks east of Jabalia in the Halawa camp. Israeli forces stationed along the edges of the so-called Yellow Line began firing directly at tents sheltering displaced families in that area.

Explosions were heard in the Shujayea, Tuffah, and Zeitoun neighbourhoods of eastern Gaza City due to artillery shelling. Israeli forces are conducting large-scale demolitions in areas under their control behind the Yellow Line. This includes zones east of Deir el-Balah, Khan Younis, and Gaza City, as well as Beit Lahiya in the north. Homes and remaining local infrastructure are being destroyed.

Four Palestinians were buried at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Thursday morning. They were killed in a drone strike in the al-Mawasi area of Rafah, near the Rafah and Karem Abu Salem crossings. Abu Amra identified the victims as civilian employees of the Ministry of Economy who monitor aid trucks entering through Karem Abu Salem.

More than 30 other people were wounded in the al-Mawasi attack, according to Al Jazeera’s Moath al-Kahlout. Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians live in tents in that area, which Israel had previously designated a safe zone. Al-Kahlout also reported that 11 people, including women and children, were wounded when artillery struck a house east of Gaza City.

The Health Ministry said six Palestinians were killed and 38 were wounded over the previous 24 hours. Since February, 3,056 patients and wounded people have been evacuated for treatment abroad. Of those, 2,614 left through Rafah, which connects Gaza with Egypt, and 442 left through the Karem Abu Salem crossing with Israel.