An attack on al-Ahli hospital in Gaza city on Tuesday (17) left hundreds dead, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Responsibility for what happened divides Israel, Palestine and other nations amid the conflict between the Israelis and the radical Islamic group Hamas.
A CNN was unable to independently verify the authorship of the attack.
What is known about the hospital?
Founded in 1882 and run by the Anglican Church, al-Ahli Arab Hospital is officially described as “a haven of peace in the middle of one of the most troubled places in the world”. It is located in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, in the northern region of the Gaza Strip.
The unit offers 80 beds, as well as services such as a free program to detect breast cancer, a center for elderly women and a mobile clinic with free services for neighboring cities.
How many people were in the hospital?
Although it had a limited number of beds, the hospital was operating beyond its capacity — like others in the region — to receive wounded people since the start of Israeli aerial fire launched in response to the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7.
In addition to dealing with the surge in patients, people also sought refuge in hospitals throughout Gaza, as these places were considered safe.
Fadel Naim, head of orthopedic surgery, said there were about 1,000 people at the site that morning, and more people rushed there later in the day following a warning from the Israeli army for residents of the Zeitoun neighborhood to evacuate their homes.
What preceded the attack?
Israel previously told Palestinians in northern Gaza to move south for “their own safety.”
The Israeli military specifically told residents of Zeitoun to leave the area on the day of the attack, in a message posted on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
Kuwait’s specialized hospital, in the city of Rafah, in southern Gaza, reported having received two Israeli warnings to evacuate on Monday (16). Its director, however, said the team would not leave.
When did the attack happen?
Naim said he had finished one surgery and was about to begin another when he heard a huge explosion. He claims that the explosion occurred at around 6:30 pm local time on Tuesday.
See: Bombing hits hospital in Gaza Strip
What was the damage caused?
Internal images of the site obtained by Reuters showed around two dozen vehicles destroyed on its premises.
They were surrounded by damaged buildings with broken windows. There were bloodstains on the walls and floor.
What does Palestine say?
Palestinian authorities blamed Israel.
Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian extremist group allied with Hamas, denied that any of its rockets were involved in the explosion and claimed to have no activity in or around Gaza at the time.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said the United States was responsible and that Washington gave Israel “the cover for its aggression.”
The health minister of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority blamed Israel for what he called a “massacre.”
What does Israel say?
The country denied blame and claimed the explosion was caused by a failed rocket launch by Islamic Jihad.
An Israeli army spokesman said an analysis of the Israel Defense Forces’ operational systems indicated that rockets were fired by extremists in Gaza and passed near the hospital at the time it was hit.
“The multi-source intelligence we have in our hands indicates that Islamic Jihad is responsible for the failed rocket launch that hit the hospital in Gaza.”
A military spokesman said there was no structural damage to buildings around the hospital and no craters consistent with an airstrike. The spokesman said Hamas inflated the number of victims and said the group could not know as quickly as it claimed what caused the explosion.
The military said around 450 rockets fired from Gaza have failed and landed in the Gaza Strip over the past 11 days.
What does the UN say?
A senior United Nations official called for the entity’s own investigation into the episode.
“The UN will certainly want to do its own investigation, and that must be done very soon and very quickly,” UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths told the news anchor. CNN Christiane Amanpour.
What does the United States say?
US President Joe Biden, who has supported Israel since the start of the war, said that based on information he had seen, the attack appeared to be the result of an errant rocket fired by a “terrorist group”, echoing the view of Israeli authorities .
US officials told CNN that initial evidence collected by government intelligence suggests that the explosion occurred due to a failed rocket launch by Islamic Jihad.
What does the Anglican church say?
Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican Church, said: “This is a terrible and devastating loss of innocent life.” Ahli hospital is run by the Anglican Church.
See also: Images of the conflict between Israel and Hamas
Source: CNN Brasil
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