On 17th October (local time), a rocket fell on Al-Ahli al-Arabi Hospital in Gaza, killing around 500 people. While Gaza’s health ministry spokesperson claimed it was an Israeli rocket, Israel countered with footage from Al Jazeera allegedly showing a missile originating from Gaza to attack Israel, falling short and hitting the hospital.
So far, the blast has resulted in the highest number of casualties in a single incident in Gaza, triggering protests in West Bank, Istanbul and Amman and drawing condemnation from around the world.
The hospital was reportedly treating hundreds of patients injured from the airstrikes, as well as providing shelter to many displaced from their homes.
Over 2.3 million Palestinians are currently trapped in Gaza as Israel’s war against Hamas continues. Egypt and Jordan have refused to take refugees from Gaza while Israel has been asking civilians to evacuate from the Strip.
⭕ LIVE: Israeli air attacks have killed hundreds of Palestinians in al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City where thousands are seeking medical treatment and shelter from heavy bombardment. https://t.co/w1rEnOjrRJ
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) October 17, 2023
The Palestinian Authority’s health ministry, Mai Alkaila, claimed Israel caused a massacre at the hospital as the strike killed hundreds of people. Countering Gaza’s claims, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that it was the “barbaric terrorists” in Gaza that attacked the hospital.
Speaking to the media, Israeli Military spokesperson Rear Admiral Danial Hagari said that the Islamic Jihad terrorist group fired the rocket. The rocket passed the hospital at the time of the strike and hit the location’s parking lot.
Speaking to CNN, Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus said they intercepted a conversation of the terrorists in which they had acknowledged a misfire.
Here I explain to @ErinBurnett on @cnni our investigation and some of the evidence we are going to share about why the explosion at the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza was caused by an Islamic Jihad rocket that misfired. And I caution all jornalists to take info from Hamas-controlled… pic.twitter.com/0hJ1ljI7TV
— Jonathan Conricus (@jconricus) October 18, 2023
For those unaware, Islamic Jihad is the second largest terrorist organisation active in Gaza. The Iran-backed terror group denied the allegations, claiming they had no activity in Gaza around that time. Islamic Jihad was part of the terrorist attack on Israel led by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas that killed around 1,300 people, including women, children and the elderly.
Israel used Al Jazeera’s video to prove rocket was shot from Gaza
Quoting a report from Al Jazeera English, where it was claimed that an Israeli rocket killed hundreds of Palestinians in the attack on the hospital, Israel Defense Forces published a video from Al Jazeera’s Arabic channel showing the alleged misfire. IDF urged Al Jazeera to check its own footage where a rocket aimed at Israel was misfired and exploded, hitting a building in Gaza.
Check your own footage before you accuse Israel.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 18, 2023
18:59 – A rocket aimed at Israel misfired and exploded.
18:59 – A hospital was hit in Gaza.
You had one job. https://t.co/iCgYOkaE84 pic.twitter.com/Ag2mKCBb6M
There are claims that IDF shared an old video but the videos attached to those posts are different from what IDF has shared.
Israeli Posts 'FAKE' Video of Baptist Hospital Strike in Gaza… Claiming it was Hamas
— M.A.Y (@QAYTUUM) October 17, 2023
Remember, Tel Aviv switched off the electricity? 💡 {notice the lights on in buildings]
A Times of Israel journalist has even said the footage is old. Never trust 'enemy' is spreading fake news pic.twitter.com/6exlOpFoer
Reposting old footage and claiming it as the rocket that hit the hospital does Israel no favors. It's impossible to get away with bs nowadays and undermines when actual events and facts are presented. pic.twitter.com/wjcyHzFDlp
— Ranj Talabany (@ranj_talabany) October 17, 2023
Al Jazeera’s post saying Israeli airstrike hit the hospital in Gaza gets ‘fact checked’ by community notes.
Al Jazeera has been assertive in its claims that it was an Israeli airstrike that hit the hospital in Gaza. However, Al Jazeera’s post claiming the same has been ‘fact checked’ by X’s community notes, saying that their own video captures the moment a rocket fired from inside Gaza misfires and hits a building inside Gaza, reportedly the Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital, causing a large blast.
Israel Hamas war
On 7th October, hundreds of Hamas terrorists infiltrated Israel through various means, overwhelming the Iron Dome with over 5,000 rockets in a matter of few minutes. They also abducted hostages and took them to Gaza. In a counterattack on Hamas by Israeli forces, more than 1,500 have been reportedly killed in the Israel-Hamas war. The death toll in Israel from the Hamas attack has now surpassed 1,300, with over 3,300 injured, primarily civilians. Israel launched a major offensive against Hamas in Gaza, restricting power and water supply and blocking essential goods from entering the region. Over 400,000 Gaza residents have been evacuated so far. Meanwhile, India has launched Operation Ajay to evacuate Indians from Israel.
