Meloni: War in Gaza ‘has gone beyond the principle of proportionality’

Israel’s strike this week on a Khan Younis hospital that killed five journalists was “unjustifiable,” says Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, adding that the war against Hamas sparked by the terror group’s October 7 onslaught in Israel has “gone beyond the principle of proportionality.”

“We condemn the unjustifiable killing of journalists, an unacceptable attack on press freedom and on all those who risk their lives to report the tragedy of war,” she says during her address at an annual Catholic festival in Rimini, Italy.

“We did not hesitate for a single minute in supporting Israel’s right to defense after the horrors of the October 7 massacre,” continues the conservative premier. “But we cannot remain silent now in the face of a reaction that has gone beyond the principle of proportionality, claiming too many innocent victims, and even involving Christian communities.”

She says that Italy is “reaffirming its role” in Gaza, highlighting Italy’s involvement in medical evacuations from the Strip.

“There are those who go through the motions and those who save children. I am proud to be among the latter.”

The Israel Defense Forces said yesterday that its preliminary investigation into Monday’s deadly attack on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis found that Hamas had installed a surveillance camera on hospital grounds and that six of the more than 20 people killed were terror operatives, including one who took part in the October 7, 2023, massacre in southern Israel.

The IDF reiterated that it regrets civilian casualties and does not target journalists, while accusing Hamas of “cynically” exploiting medical facilities for military purposes.