US attempts to evade blame for Israeli raid on Al-Shifa Hospital
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John Kirby claims the US did not "green light" the operation in any way, adding that such decisions were exclusively Israeli ones.
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US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, June 12, 2023. (AP)
The White House has attempted to evade responsibility for "Israel's" raid of Al-Shifa hospital after it claimed evidence of Hamas running operations out of the hospital.
John Kirby claimed the US did not "green light" the operation in any way, adding that such decisions were exclusively Israeli ones.
Hamas has held the President of the United States Joe Biden responsible for the raid. In response, Kirby told reporters, "We did not give an OK to their military operations around the hospital."
Further exposing Israeli lies, the Hamas movement confirmed that the Israeli occupation’s claim that there are weapons in Al-Shifa Hospital is merely part “of the blatant lies and cheap propaganda, through which it tries to justify its crime with the aim of destroying the health sector in Gaza.”
Hamas stressed that this propaganda is the same as that the Israeli forces used to justify their storming of Al-Rantisi Children's Hospital, "where the occupation plants weapons in the place and puts up an unsubstantiated charade that no one falls for anymore."
The Resistance movement reminded everyone of the call it repeatedly made to the United Nations and international organizations to form an international committee to “look into the conditions of hospitals and thus, expose the lies of the occupation’s narrative and its false claims.”
Hamas also highlighted "the extent of lies and deception promoted by the occupation to cover up its crimes against children, women, and defenseless civilians."
This comes as Israeli occupation forces converted Al-Shifa Hospital into a military barracks, handcuffing a large number of its attending doctors and indiscriminately opening fire throughout the health facility as they storm patient wards without constraints, Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported on Wednesday.
Kirby refused to go into details regarding what was discussed via phone call by Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday or if the administration had been warned about the incoming raid.
He also expressed that the US was "comfortable" with their intelligence assessment, telling reporters on Tuesday that the US held information confirming that Al-Shifa was a "command and control mode" for Hamas, in addition to a storage facility for weapons.
Overlooking the scores of war crimes committed by Israeli forces, Kirby shamelessly alleged that Hamas' use of the hospital is a war crime.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement warned on Tuesday of the US administration adopting Israeli occupation's lies regarding the use of hospitals by the Palestinian Resistance as operation centers.
The PIJ stated that this development greenlights Israeli crimes against hospitals, denying the claims made by the White House and the Pentagon on this matter.
Hamas also expressed its rejection of Washington's statements regarding the movement allegedly using hospitals to hide captive Israeli occupation soldiers or as command and control centers.
IOF withdraw from Al-Shifa, present in vicinity
Meanwhile, a journalist trapped in Al-Shifa told AFP that the IOF may have withdrawn from the hospital after numerous have been martyred and wounded.
According to Al-Shifa's Director, having not found any weapons or captives, the IOF withdrew from the hospital, but tanks and troops are still surrounding it. He reported that numerous staff were interrogated and two engineers were arrested by the IOF.
US discreetly sends 'Israel' more ammunition, missiles: Bloomberg
While the US evades responsibility for Israeli crimes committed with US money, the Pentagon has discreetly increased military assistance to "Israel", fulfilling requests that include additional laser-guided missiles for its Apache gunship fleet, 155mm shells, night-vision devices, bunker-buster munitions, and new army vehicles, as outlined in an internal Defense Department list.
This arms supply to "Israel" goes beyond the publicly known provision of Iron Dome munitions and Boeing Co. smart bombs, according to Bloomberg News. The deliveries persist even as officials in the Biden administration increasingly allegedly advise "Israel" to take precautions to avoid civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.
The specific weapons requested by "Israel" are detailed in a document labeled "Israel Senior Leader" requests. This document, dated late October, is circulating within the Pentagon.
As per the document assessed by Bloomberg News, these weapons are either presently in transit or the Defense Department is actively endeavoring to ensure their availability from stockpiles located in the US and Europe.
