The Daily Observer London Desk: Reporter- Donna Robert
President Biden said Wednesday that U.S. intelligence corroborates Israel’s claim that it was not to blame for the deadly explosion at a Gaza hospital that killed 500 people and sparked mass protests in Arab nations.
During his visit to Tel Aviv, Mr. Biden was asked why he was confident that an Israeli airstrike did not hit the hospital.
“The data I was shown by the Defense Department,” he responded.
Earlier Wednesday, Mr. Biden suggested that the hospital attack was linked to an Islamic jihad rocket. He told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israelis weren’t behind the hospital blast.
“I was deeply saddened and outraged by the explosion at the hospital in Gaza yesterday. And based on what I’ve seen, it appears as though it was done by the other team, not you,” he told Mr. Netanyahu. “But there’s a lot of people out there, not sure, so we’re going to overcome a lot of things.”
The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza said Tuesday that an Israeli airstrike caused the explosion and killed about 500 people at the hospital, which also served as a shelter from the ongoing Israeli bombardment. The Israeli military said it was not responsible for the explosion and the blast was likely caused by a misfired Palestinian rocket.
Ahead of his trip to Israel, Mr. Biden had tasked his national security team to continue evaluating information about the source of the hospital bombing.
