White House decries deadly strike on UN shelter in Gaza, avoids casting blame
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief

The White House decries a strike earlier today on a UN shelter in Khan Younis, but avoids assigning blame in a relatively rare statement on an individual strike in Gaza.
“We are gravely concerned by reports today of strikes hitting a UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) facility — with subsequent reports of fires in the building — in a neighborhood in southern Gaza where more than 30,000 displaced Palestinians had reportedly been sheltering,” National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson says.
At least 9 people were killed and 75 people were injured in the strike on a vocational center that has been functioning as a shelter for roughly 800 displaced Palestinians, according to UNRWA.
The IDF said it launched an investigation into the incident but has already determined that it’s air and artillery forces were not responsible. It said it was still looking into its ground forces’ operations in the area but also was checking to see if the blast was caused by an errant Hamas rocket.
“While we don’t yet have all the details on what happened and will continue to seek further information regarding today’s incidents, the loss of every innocent life is a tragedy,” Watson says.
“This conflict has already resulted in the devastating deaths and injuries of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, and we mourn every single civilian life that has been lost. It’s heartbreaking to see children killed, injured, and orphaned.”
“The United States is unwavering in our support for Israel’s right to defend itself, consistent with international humanitarian law, against Hamas terrorists who hide among the civilian population and want to annihilate the State of Israel.”
“But Israel retains a responsibility to protect civilians, including, humanitarian personnel and sites,” she continues, suggesting that the IDF could have been behind the strike.
“As President Biden has been clear from the earliest days of this crisis, the United States will also continue working to increase life-saving humanitarian assistance into Gaza and to bring home all of the hostages held there,” the White House statement adds.