Palestinian territories:
The Palestinian group Hamas accused US President Joe Biden on Wednesday of being “fully responsible” for an Israeli army operation in Gaza’s largest hospital.
“We hold the occupation (Israel) and President Biden fully responsible for the attack on the Al-Shifa medical complex,” Hamas said in a statement.
“The White House and Pentagon’s acceptance of the occupation’s false claim that the resistance is using the Al-Shifa medical complex for military purposes has given the occupation the green light to commit more massacres against civilians.”
Israeli forces said early Wednesday they were carrying out a “precise and targeted operation” against a suspected Hamas command center under Al-Shifa, where thousands of civilians are seeking shelter.
The White House had said on Tuesday that US intelligence sources confirmed Israel’s claim that Hamas has buried an operations center beneath the hospital.
Biden had also urged Israel to take “less drastic measures against” Al-Shifa, adding: “The hospital must be protected.”
Israel has repeatedly claimed that Hamas’s military use of the facility “jeopardizes its protected status under international law” – a claim that many international human rights lawyers refute.
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