IDF: Military intercepted communications indicating Islamic Jihad fired hospital rocket
In a briefing with reporters, IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said radar detected outgoing rocket fire at the same moment the blast at the Gaza hospital occurred on Tuesday, and intercepted communications between terror groups indicating that Islamic Jihad fired the rockets.
The army determined there were no air force, ground or naval attacks in the area at the time of the blast at the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital.
Hagari also shared aerial footage collected by a military drone that showed a blast that he said was inconsistent with Israeli weaponry. He said the explosion occurred in the building’s parking lot.
Since the war began, the military said in a statement that roughly 450 rockets fired at Israel by terror groups had landed in Gaza, “endangering and harming the lives of Gazan residents.”
Islamic Jihad dismissed the claims, accusing Israel of “trying hard to evade responsibility for the brutal massacre it committed.”
Several videos appear to show the moment the rocket fell short and exploded inside the Palestinian territory on Tuesday.
Surveillance camera footage from Netiv Haasara shows a large barrage of rockets being launched from northern Gaza, followed by a massive blast in the Strip, apparently caused by a failed projectile. pic.twitter.com/PdNCbks02r
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) October 17, 2023
One video, taken from Kibbutz Netiv Haasara, appeared to match footage taken by Al Jazeera, which also showed a rocket misfire land inside Gaza.
Full recording from @ajmubasher feed.
You can see outgoing rocket fire some distance away. The rocket is intercepted in the air, and breaks apart into shrapnel.
After this 2 explosions are seen: one smaller one, perhaps on the rocket launcher, and a big one on the hospital. pic.twitter.com/upR4Dnrvsq
— Yousuf (@yousuf_tw) October 17, 2023
Another video, published by Palestinian media outlets, showed the blast at the Ahli Arab Hospital.
تغطية اخبارية| لحظة قصف الاحتلال لمستشفى المعمداني في غزة، ما أدى لاستشهاد المئات. pic.twitter.com/4IRmWIAvpd
— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) October 17, 2023