Iranian Missile Strike Damages Israeli Hospital, 71 Injured
At least 71 people sustained minor injuries after an Iranian missile strike damaged Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, southern Israel, on Thursday.
The attack was part of a broader Iranian offensive that also struck areas in Tel Aviv, Holon and Ramat Gan, leaving a total of 271 people injured across Israel, with four in critical condition, according to the Israeli Health Ministry.
Iran said the strike targeted a nearby military command and intelligence centre, not the hospital itself. However, the blast from the strike caused significant damage to the medical facility.
In response, Israel launched retaliatory missile strikes on Iranian sites, hitting a nuclear reactor in Arak, nuclear facilities in Natanz, and ballistic missile locations, according to the Israeli Defense Forces.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that 639 people have been killed in Iran since the Israeli counter-offensive began, including 263 civilians and 154 military personnel. Iranian strikes have killed 24 people in Israel and injured 838 others.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz blamed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling him a threat who “can no longer be allowed to exist.”
“Khamenei openly declares that he wants Israel destroyed—he personally gives the order to fire on hospitals,” Katz said while inspecting damage in Holon. He vowed intensified Israeli strikes targeting strategic locations in Tehran.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also condemned the strike, saying, “We will exact the full price from the tyrants in Tehran.”
Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, while visiting the damaged hospital, declared, “The regime of the ayatollahs needs to be annihilated,” calling the moment “historic” and urging a decisive blow against Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
Ben-Gvir’s comments come as he faces sanctions from several Western countries for allegedly inciting violence in the West Bank.
Questions about U.S. involvement remain unresolved. When asked during a visit to Soroka Medical Center, Netanyahu said, “President Trump will do what’s best for America. I trust his judgment, he is a tremendous friend of Israel.”
Trump, speaking to reporters a day earlier, said, “I may do it, I may not do it, nobody knows what I’m going to do,” when asked if he was considering military action against Iran.
Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei warned that any U.S. military intervention would cause “irreparable damage,” while Russia also cautioned that an American strike could dangerously widen the conflict.
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