Israel and Hamas accuse each other of being behind the strike which hit a hospital in northern Gaza and left “at least 200 dead” on October 17. But the Jewish state says it has “proof” of the responsibility of Palestinian armed groups.
A “massacre” on the eleventh day of war between Israel and Hamas. An airstrike fell on the Al-Ahli Arabi hospital in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 200 people, most of whom were civilians, according to a report from the Hamas Health Ministry. “Hundreds of victims are still under the rubble” and “at least 500 people have been killed and injured,” adds the ministry document. In an almost immediate reaction, the Palestinian Islamist group accused the Israeli army of being behind the shooting and called the strike on the hospital “a new war crime of the occupation”.
But Israel strongly denies being the author of the strike and blames Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian armed group. And the latter indicates that he is not involved in this strike. All parties to the conflict share responsibility for one of the deadliest strikes since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
“There is no excuse for hitting a hospital full of medical staff and civilians,” said the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, who believes that the “terror of Hamas” is plunging the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into a new “spiral of violence”.
Israel says it has “proof” of Islamic Jihad responsibility
Israel’s first reaction was defense. “We did not hit this hospital. We do not intentionally hit any sensitive installation, and certainly not hospitals. We are very aware of the presence of civilians,” he declared to CNN Jonathan Conricus, the international spokesperson for the Israeli army.
Not only to defend its camp, the IDF assured that the strike on the Al-Ahli Arabi hospital “was caused by the firing of a failed Islamic Jihad rocket.” Spokesman Daniel Hagari says he bases his analysis “on intelligence, operational systems and aerial images, all of which have been cross-checked” and suggests that the rocket attack was launched from a cemetery with the initial aim of hitting on Israel.
Among the evidence Israel says it has is transcription between two Hamas leaders who talk about an Islamic Jihad rocket attack. The shot in question was allegedly launched from a cemetery located behind Al-Ma’amadani Hospital, which would be the former name of the Al-Ahli Hospital hit by the strike, according to the exchange.
Israel also believes that the hospital was not hit by a strike, but by an explosion caused by the failure of the rocket fire. The Israeli army released a video intended to prove the validity of its argument and the responsibility of Jihad and Hamas. According to the IDF, there is no crater or other evidence to prove that an airstrike caused the hospital explosion. It also highlights the absence of structural damage around the medical establishment. No verification of these elements has been made.
A failed rocket launch by the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization hit the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza City:
Attached is a video from the IAF system that captured the area around the hospital before and after the failed rocket launch by the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization: pic.twitter.com/OXxKRcSbYF
— – Daniel Hagari (@IDFSpokesperson) October 18, 2023
Which hospital is affected in Gaza?
It was the Al-Ahli Arabi hospital, one of 22 medical establishments in northern Gaza, which was hit. Formerly known as Al-Ma’amadani Hospital, the facility is run by Anglican Christians, including the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, and has served as a refuge for Palestinians since the strikes began. The same hospital had already been hit by rocket fire on October 14 according to a press release from the Archbishop of Canterbury.