Israel is promising to respond forcefully to Iran’s latest missile barrage after Tehran struck the largest hospital in southern Israel as the war between the two countries escalates.
An Iranian missile hit the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba on Thursday, causing significant damage to the hospital, one of numerous Iranian strikes on Israel that wounded an estimated 89 people across the country.
“The Iranian regime targeted Soroka Hospital in Beersheba with a ballistic missile—hitting a major medical center. We will not stand by. We will continue doing what must be done to defend our people,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said on social media while sharing footage of the hospital attack.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed it was attempting to hit nearby military facilities, without providing evidence to back up its claim. Soroka’s surgical wing was hit directly by the missile, which could have resulted in dozens of fatalities had the area not been evacuated 24 hours ahead of time due to intelligence assessments predicting the upcoming Iranian attack.
The hospital’s director, Shlomi Codish, said 40 people were injured, the majority of whom sustained minor injuries.
Israeli defense minister Israel Katz said the Iranian strikes on the hospital and residential buildings amounted to “war crimes” and vowed accountability for Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
“A dictator like Khamenei, who heads a country like Iran and has made the destruction of the State of Israel his declared goal, this horrific goal of destroying Israel, cannot be allowed to continue or materialize,” Israel Katz said after the latest wave of Iranian missiles struck a hospital, wounding dozens of civilians.
“The IDF has been instructed and knows that to achieve all the objectives, without question this man should no longer continue to exist.”
Likewise, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not rule out assassinating Khamenei when he visited Soroka hospital following the missile strike.
Taunting Khamenei, President Donald Trump said earlier this week the U.S. and Israel were choosing to spare him for the time being, even though they have his location. Khamenei dismissed Trump’s rhetoric in an address to the Iranian people and rejected Trump’s call for him to surrender immediately.
Over the past week, Iran has launched more than 400 rockets towards Israel and hundreds of drones, killing 24 and wounding upwards of 800 people. During that time, Israel has taken out many top Iranian military commanders and nuclear scientists with precision attacks targeted at Tehran’s nuclear program.
The Israeli military continues to strike Iran’s nuclear infrastructure to prevent the regime from developing a nuclear weapon. The U.S. is weighing whether to join Israel and begin assisting the Jewish state with destroying Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
President Trump said Wednesday the U.S. may or may not strike Iran, leaving the door open to it without directly addressing the situation.
“I may do it, I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do. I can tell you this, that Iran’s got a lot of trouble. And they want to negotiate. And I say why didn’t you negotiate with me before all this death and destruction,” Trump stated.
The U.S. has helped Israel defend itself from the Iranian missile attacks without getting directly involved in Israel’s military operation to this point. Israeli air defenses have prevented most of Iran’s projectiles from causing serious damage, but some have made it through and hit civilian areas.