An Israeli airstrike has destroyed part of al Ahli Arab Hospital, the last fully functional hospital in Gaza City, the BBC reports.

Witnesses said the strike destroyed the intensive care and surgery departments of the hospital.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it targeted the hospital because it contained a "command and control centre used by Hamas." No casualties were reported, according to Gaza's civil emergency service.

A local journalist, who was working at the hospital, said the IDF had phoned a doctor who was operating in the emergency department, and asked them to evacuate the hospital immediately.