Un hospital, which was also a refuge for many families, was bombed last night. At least they can be counted 500 dead. And no one was, or rather, everyone points the finger at the other. It is the most serious massacre of civilians since the bombing campaign of Tel Aviv in Gaza began after the Hamas assault on Israel.
At the moment there are two versions of what happened, one contrary to the other.
Hamas' version: it was the Israelis
The first version, at seven in the evening yesterday, comes from the spokesperson of Ministry of Health checked by Hamas, Ashraf al Qudra, who speaks of "genocide" and "500 deaths" and that an Israeli bomb hit the Christian al Ahli hospital in the center of Gaza City.
It is a hospital that in recent days has been used by hundreds of people seeking protection from the bombings. There is a first video that shows high fuel flames burning in front of the building, while a second video shows a dozen bodies removed in the dark and lying on the lawn outside the hospital. The Israeli army does not comment in the first minutes, it only says that the episode is "under investigation" and a little later it limits itself to denying Hamas, which in the meantime circulates the news that the Israelis had warned to evacuate the hospital: it is false, he says.
Israel's version: they were Hamas' allies
But shortly before 11 o'clock last night, Israel's version arrived: the responsibility for the explosion lies with Israel Islamic Jihad, the Palestinian group from the Strip ally of Hamas. The official statement from the Israeli army states: “Analysis of the operational systems of the Israel Defense Forces indicates that a salvo of rockets was fired by terrorists in Gaza and passed close to Gaza's Al Ahli hospital when it was hit. Multiple intelligence sources in our possession indicate that Islamic Jihad is responsible for the failed rocket launch that hit the hospital in Gaza.” The Israelis also cite an Al Jazeera video to support their version.
The aftermath: Riots begin in the West Bank and Amman
Now the region is holding its breath to understand whether the war will remain confined within the Strip or will expand and involve everyone. Five hundred civilians killed in a hospital in Gaza is news capable of overturning the whole situation, of calling into question those who until now had almost been observing, such as Iran, sponsor of Hezbollah, and of frustrating any attempt to stop the enlargement Of the war. They start right away riots in Ramallah, IN West Bank, against the Palestinian National Authority considered too close to Israel and in Amman in Jordan around the Israeli embassy.
Biden is coming. But Abu Mazen and Al Sisi cancel the summit
The first visit of the American president is scheduled for today Joe Biden in Jerusalem, but Abu Mazen and Al Sisi they canceled the Amman summit: "If it doesn't stop the war it's useless." The American president made it known that he was "outraged and deeply saddened" by what happened at the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City and by the "terrible loss of human life that resulted". Biden said he spoke with the King Abdullah II of Jordan and the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and instructed his national security team to gather more information about what happened at the hospital.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah has proclaimed an "unprecedented day of anger", reports Al Arabiya, it will be against Israel and on the occasion of the arrival of the American president
Emergency meeting of the UN Security Council today
At the request of Russia and the United Arab Emirates, the United Nations Security Council will hold an emergency meeting today after the Gaza hospital massacre and will also comment on a resolution presented by Brazil to try to find a common position on the war between Israel and Hamas. The meeting will be held at the 16 now Italian, the United Nations said. Diplomatic sources reported that the resolution presented by Brazil, which heads the Security Council in October, will be put to the vote of the 15 member states of the Council shortly before 16pm Italian time. The Security Council yesterday rejected a resolution proposed by Russia for a "humanitarian ceasefire" and "unhindered" humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip. But it ran aground over its failure to name Hamas, which was unacceptable to the US, UK and France. Brazil's draft resolution instead condemns "the atrocious terrorist attacks by Hamas".
Israel to fellow citizens, leave Turkey immediately
Meanwhile, the Israeli National Security Council has called on all Israeli citizens to "immediately leave" the country Turkey after having raised the alert to the maximum allowed, i.e. level 4. The Israeli media reported this, explaining that the decision is due to the fear that citizens of the Jewish state could be targets following the military escalation in the Middle East. The Council then raised the alert to level 2 Morocco inviting fellow citizens to keep their attention high.
