Phl ‘saddened’ over hospital bombing in Gaza

The Philippines on Wednesday expressed its sadness over the bombing of a hospital in the Gaza Strip which reportedly killed at least 500 civilians.

"The Philippines is profoundly saddened over the recent bombing of the Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza," the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

"We grieve for the hundreds of innocent lives lost in this tragic incident, non-combatants which include medical practitioners, children, the wounded, and displaced individuals who only sought shelter at the facility," it added.

Both Israel and Hamas denied that they were behind the attack and attributed the civilian infrastructure bombing to each other.

For its part, the Philippines said that all parties should "do their utmost to protect civilians in times of war and armed conflict."

"We support efforts of the United Nations to provide humanitarian relief in the conflict areas," it said.

According to the DFA, there are 135 Filipinos in the Palestinian Sunni-Islamic extremist Hamas-controlled Gaza.

Many of them are now stranded in the Rafah border crossing, the only exit to the war-torn Gaza Strip.

More than 1,400 Israelis have reportedly been killed since the surprise attack of Hamas in Israel last 7 October.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry of Palestine reported that at least 2,778 people have been killed and 9,700 wounded in Gaza.