IDF confirms Gaza hospital blast caused by Islamic Jihad rocket misfire

Jerusalem, Oct 18

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has said that the Israeli military did not strike the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in the Gaza Strip and that the facility was hit by a failed rocket launched by the Islamic Jihad terror organisation, media reports said.

The Israeli military has said on Tuesday that following an additional review and cross-examination of the operational and intelligence systems, "it is clear that the IDF did not strike the hospital in Gaza."

"I can confirm that following an analysis of the IDF operational systems indicates that a barrage of rockets was fired by terrorists in Gaza, passing in close proximity to the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza at the time it was hit," says Hagari in a short video sent by the IDF.

Intelligence points to Islamic Jihad "which is responsible for the failed rocket launch which hit the hospital in Gaza," he added.

Hamas and most Arab nations have blamed Israel for the explosion, which the Hamas terror group said killed around 500 people. The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza later said between 200 and 300 persons had been killed, The Times of Israel reported.

The Israeli military says Gaza-based terror organisations fire rockets indiscriminately toward Israel and about 450 rockets launched toward Israel have fallen inside Gaza since the beginning of the war on October 7, "endangering and harming the lives of Gazan residents."

Surveillance camera footage shows the moment the rocket launched from the Gaza Strip appears to fall short and explode inside the Palestinian enclave, The Times of Israel reported.

Several other videos appear to show the same.

One video, taken from Netiv Haasara, appeared to match footage taken by Al Jazeera, which also showed a rocket misfire land inside Gaza.

Another video, published by Palestinian media outlets, showed the blast at the Ahli Arab Hospital.

The Al Jazeera footage was geolocated by experts on X to the hospital.