Jason Bellini
Biden: Israel not to blame in Gaza hospital blast that killed hundreds
President Biden, while in Tel Aviv, told Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu that the blast "was done by the other team, not you."
LEARN MOREPosted: 11:20 a.m. EDT Oct 18, 2023
Israel Defense Forces is making its case that it did not strike the al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza, claiming the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad is to blame.
"Intelligence from a few sources that we have in our hands indicates that the Islamic Jihad is responsible for the failed rocket launch which hit the hospital in Gaza," said Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces.
To bolster its case, the IDF released an infographic. The military says its radar identified the launch point of an Islamic Jihad rocket barrage — with one of the rockets failing, falling from the sky and exploding in a parking lot of the hospital. The IDF says the rocket's unspent propellant then fueled the blast, engulfing the hospital.
"Most of the rocket's propellant is still evident due to the short flight of the rocket because the launch failed," said Hagari.
The IDF also presented what Israel says is an intercepted call between two Hamas operatives discussing the launch failure, in which they make specific reference to the hospital.
The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry continues to maintain that an Israeli airstrike caused the blast, killing nearly 500 people and wounding about 350 others.
Scripps News cannot independently verify what caused the blast, or the extent of casualties.
