In the aftermath of the tragic explosion at al Ahli hospital in Gaza, US officials from the White House National Security Council (NSC) have released their initial findings, indicating that Israel is “not responsible” for the blast. The NSC’s current assessment is based on the analysis of overhead imagery, intercepts, and open source information.
NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson stated to NBC News, “While we continue to collect information, our current assessment is that Israel is not responsible for the explosion at the hospital in Gaza yesterday.”
President Joe Biden echoed these sentiments during his high-risk diplomatic mission to Israel, asserting that, based on what he has seen, the explosion at al Ahli hospital appeared to be caused “by the other team” and not by Israel. Biden held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, aiming to prevent the Israel-Hamas conflict from escalating into a broader regional crisis.
Expressing sadness and outrage over the strike, Biden announced the US’s commitment to providing $100 million in aid to support Gaza and the West Bank. Israel, in response to a request from President Biden, agreed to allow the delivery of limited quantities of humanitarian aid, including food, water, and medicine, into the Gaza Strip through the Egyptian border.
However, Israel clarified that it would not permit humanitarian aid from its territory to Gaza until their hostages are returned. The prime minister’s office emphasised that Israel “will not thwart humanitarian supplies from Egypt” as long as it reaches the “civilian population in the southern Gaza Strip.”
President Biden issued a warning against any attempts by Hamas to steal the aid, emphasising that such actions would illustrate the group’s “no concern for the welfare of the Palestinian people.”
Notably, there was no mention of fuel in the aid package, despite urgent requests from Palestinian hospitals to power patient generators, including those at the struck al-Ahli hospital.
