A strike on Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital in Gaza has killed hundreds of Palestinians, deepening tensions in the Middle East and raising the stakes for U.S. President, Joe Biden, as he flies to Israel on Wednesday
Palestinian officials said an Israeli air strike hit the hospital, with the Palestinian Authority’s health minister accusing Israel of causing a “massacre”.
Israel blamed the blast at Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital on a failed rocket launch by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, which denied responsibility.
Palestinian ministry spokesperson, Ashraf Al-Qudra, said rescuers were still pulling bodies from the rubble.
Rescuers and civilians were seen carrying away at least four victims in body bags. A Gaza civil defence chief gave a death toll of 300, while health ministry sources put it at 500.
According to Reuters, Biden’s complex diplomatic mission to the Middle East was supposed to calm the region and shore up humanitarian efforts for Gaza, but after the strike, Jordan cancelled a planned summit with the U.S. President, Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, and Egyptian President, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
READ ALSO: Israel’s military asks civilians to leave Gaza over imminent invasion
Abbas also cancelled plans to meet Biden, as Palestinian security forces fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse anti-government protesters in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah as popular anger boiled.
Protests also took place at Israel’s embassies in Turkey and Jordan and near the U.S. embassy in Lebanon, where security forces fired tear gas toward demonstrators.
Before the hospital strike, health authorities in Gaza said at least 3,000 people had died in Israel’s 11-day bombardment that began after the Hamas assault, which caught Israel by surprise and led to nearly 200 people being taken to Gaza as hostages.
The Israeli military urged Gaza City residents to relocate southward on Wednesday, saying there was a “humanitarian zone” with aid available in Al-Mawasi, 28 km (17 miles) down the coast of the Palestinian enclave.
“The IDF calls on #GazaCity residents to evacuate south for their protection,” a social-media post by the military said.
Speaking to reporters as Biden flew to Tel Aviv, White House national security spokesperson, John Kirby, said the president would put “tough questions” to Israeli leaders but did not give details.
Biden will meet Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Israeli war cabinet seeking to get a sense of Israel’s plans and aims, Kirby said.
He also aims to get humanitarian aid into Gaza, where millions of Palestinians are surviving with scant food, fuel and water due to Israel’s siege.
“He’ll be asking some tough questions, he’ll be asking them as a friend, as a true friend of Israel, but he’ll be asking some questions of them,” Kirby said.
It was unclear what Biden could accomplish during his visit.
Kirby, however, said the U.S. President planned to speak with Abbas and Sisi on his way back to Washington.
Biden has previously said the United States does not want the conflict to flare up into a wider war.
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