US protests to Israel over strike on hospital that sparked ‘horrifying’ fire in Gaza tent camp

Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief

Fire after an Israeli strike, which the military said targeted a terror command center, allegedly hit a tent area in the courtyard of Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, October 14, 2024. (Abdel Kareem Hana/ AP)
Fire after an Israeli strike, which the military said targeted a terror command center, allegedly hit a tent area in the courtyard of Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, October 14, 2024. (Abdel Kareem Hana/ AP)

The White House says it has protested to Israel over last night’s IDF strike on a hospital compound in central Gaza that led to “horrifying” images of displaced Palestinians being burned alive when their nearby tent camp caught fire.

“The images and video of what appear to be displaced civilians burning alive following an Israeli airstrike are deeply disturbing, and we have made our concerns clear to the Israeli government,” a White House National Security spokesperson tells The Times of Israel.

“Israel has a responsibility to do more to avoid civilian casualties — and what happened here is horrifying, even if Hamas was operating near the hospital in an attempt to use civilians as human shields,” the spokesperson adds in a statement.

The IDF confirmed earlier today that it struck the Al-Aqsa Hospital compound in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah, where it said terrorists were operating a command center. Three people were killed and 40 were injured, according to Palestinian media.

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