(USNewsMag.com) – Despite the conflicting information about a recent rocket strike on a Gaza hospital that allegedly killed hundreds last week, President Joe Biden commented on the incident and said he was “outraged and deeply saddened.”
The incident occurred during Israel’s military response to the large-scale coordinated attack by Hamas on October 7. Last week, on Tuesday, conflicting reports emerged that the Al Ahli Arab Hospital was hit suddenly by an explosion. The facility was caring for people already injured in Gaza after Israel’s siege following the Hamas attack earlier this month.
Who’s responsible for the blast, as well as the number of casualties, remains unclear. Palestinian authorities in Gaza reported over 400 deaths and blamed the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Israel said the number is probably exaggerated and argued the explosion didn’t come from one of their rockets but a misfired Hamas rocket. In the middle of a war, it’s not uncommon for both sides to give conflicting stories; both sides in a conflict also run their own propaganda as events play out.
The president said he was “outraged and deeply saddened by the explosion” at the hospital and the “terrible loss of life.” Biden also said that “immediately” after hearing the news, he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the King of Jordan, Abdullah II, who told Biden to have his national security team “continue gathering information” about the explosion and “what exactly happened.”
The next day, Biden traveled to Israel for a planned visit in support of the Jewish state after Hamas’ terrorist attack, although he had to change his plans to visit Jordan and other places following the hospital bombing. By the end of the trip, Biden pledged to send a $100 million aid package to the people in Gaza to help those who have been displaced after Israel’s recent military response, a decision that some fellow Democrats pushed for while others opposed, along with most Republicans who believe Hamas will get their hands on the money.
So far, over 1,300 people have reportedly died in Israel from the widespread attack by Hamas after crossing the Gaza border, and nearly 200 hostages were taken. Around 4,000 people are thought to have been killed in Gaza since Israel responded, and Biden cautioned Israel not to become “consumed” by rage.
Copyright 2023, USNewsMag.com
