Visual Evidence Undermines Israel's Official Narrative on Deadly Hospital Attack in Gaza

SadaNews - An analysis of visual evidence conducted by the news agency "Reuters", along with other information regarding an Israeli attack on a hospital in Gaza last month, contradicts the Israeli explanation of what occurred in the raid that resulted in casualties.

The attack on Nasser Hospital on August 25 resulted in the martyrdom of 22 individuals, including 5 journalists. A military official stated that Israeli forces planned the attack using footage captured by a drone, which showed a camera belonging to the Palestinian group "Hamas" that was the intended target of the raid.

However, visual evidence and other reports from "Reuters" confirm that the camera depicted in the footage actually belongs to the news agency and had been used by one of its journalists for an extended period of time.

The Israeli military official now claims that the forces acted without obtaining approval from the senior commander responsible for operations in Gaza. This official reported the breach to "Reuters" after the news agency provided its investigative findings to the Israeli military.

One day after Israeli tanks shelled Nasser Hospital, the official said that the preliminary review conducted by the military concluded that the forces targeted a camera belonging to "Hamas" because it was capturing them from the hospital. He added that the forces became suspicious of the camera because it was covered with a towel, leading to the decision to destroy it.

Prayer Rug

A screenshot taken from footage shot by an Israeli army drone shows the camera covered by a two-colored cloth on the steps of the hospital. The military official confirmed to "Reuters" last week that the camera covered with cloth was indeed the target.

"Reuters"'s investigation concluded that the cloth shown in the footage was not placed there by "Hamas". It was actually a prayer rug belonging to "Reuters" journalist Hossam al-Masri, who was killed in the attack.

Al-Masri had placed his camera at least 35 times since May on the same steps at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza to provide live broadcasts for "Reuters" media clients around the world. He had long covered his camera with the green and white prayer rug to protect it from heat and dust.

"Reuters"'s investigation provides the most comprehensive account so far of the developments surrounding the attack, including the Israeli forces' breach of the chain of command, and "Reuters" has unequivocally confirmed that the targeted camera belonged to them.

Earlier, the "Associated Press" agency, which lost one of its journalists in the hospital attack, stated that it found strong evidence that the camera described by Israeli forces as the target of the attack belonged to "Reuters".

"Tragic Incident"

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the hospital attack as a "tragic incident". A military official told "Reuters" that al-Masri and the other journalists present were not the target of the attack, and there were no suspicions regarding their connection to "Hamas".

Ismail al-Thawabteh, Director General of the Government Media Office in Gaza, which is run by "Hamas", stated that what the Israeli army said about the movement capturing Israeli forces from Nasser Hospital is a "false claim lacking any evidence and aims to evade legal and moral responsibility for a complete massacre".

Despite these revelations and a month having passed since the attack, the Israeli army has not provided a sufficient explanation of how the situation escalated to the targeting of the "Reuters" camera and the killing of Hossam al-Masri.

The Israeli army has also not clarified the following:

* Why did it not warn the hospital staff or "Reuters" of its intent to bombard the hospital?

* Why, after striking the camera in its initial attack, did the army shell the steps again 9 minutes later, resulting in the deaths of other journalists and paramedics who rushed to the site?

* Whether it considered that the steps of the hospital from which al-Masri was filming at the time of his death was a location regularly used by many journalists to capture footage and report during the war.

* Who approved the strike?

The military official did not disclose which entity issued the order for the attack, despite the lack of approval from the area commander.

Prevalent Pattern

The absence of any comprehensive explanation of what happened at Nasser Hospital represents a pattern that has emerged in Israeli military attacks that have killed journalists since Israel launched its ongoing assault about two years after the "Hamas" attack on October 7, 2023.

The Committee to Protect Journalists states that it has documented the martyrdom of 201 journalists and media workers in Gaza, Israel, and Lebanon, where the war extended shortly after the initial attack. This number includes 193 Palestinians who were killed by Israeli fire in Gaza, 6 killed by Israel in Lebanon, and 2 Israelis who died in the October 7, 2023 attack.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that Israel has never published the results of any official investigation and has not held anyone accountable for the deaths of journalists at the hands of the Israeli army, nor have any of these incidents prompted a serious review of Israeli rules of engagement, and international condemnation has not led to any change in the pattern of attacks on journalists over the past two years.

An Israeli military spokesperson said: "The Israeli army is working to minimize civilian harm, including journalists."

He added: "Given the ongoing exchange of fire, remaining in an active combat zone inherently carries risks. The Israeli army directs its strikes only at military targets and armed elements, and does not target civilians or civilian objectives, including media institutions and journalists."