Did Israel Warn Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza to Evacuate?
On Oct. 17, 2023, hundreds of people were killed from an explosion at Al Ahli Arab hospital in north Gaza. No one has taken responsibility for the explosion, with Hamas arguing it was an Israeli airstrike and Israel saying it was an errant rocket from another armed group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), which in turn denied the accusation.
Many observers online sought to highlight Israel’s alleged culpability in the destruction of the hospital as claims grew that the Israeli army had ordered an evacuation of that hospital in advance, as well as of the surrounding area. Israel had been ordering evacuations of numerous parts of Gaza, including the northern region that houses around 1 million people, whilst also hammering the territory with airstrikes.
One Twitter user wrote, “Israel indicated it was going to bomb the hospital and ordered an evacuation.” Another asked, “Why would Israel warn them to evacuate the hospital then???”
All evidence points to Israel responsibility for the Gaza Hospital bombing and massacre
1. Israel indicated it was going to bomb the hospital and ordered an evacuation.
2. Soon after the bomb it claimed it.
3. The hospital director confirms an Israeli implicit admission
4.…— Prof Thuli Madonsela #KindnessBuilds (@ThuliMadonsela3) October 18, 2023
but why would israel warn them to evacuate the hospital then??? you cant even stick to one lie, there were literally 4 diff ones in the past few hours https://t.co/ePyo1QQldr
— 3rachacha slide (@skzpink) October 17, 2023
The World Health Organization (WHO) offered some independent evidence that Israel ordered the evacuation of many hospitals and the surrounding region in north Gaza, though there were conflicting accounts on the specificity of the order. As such, we cannot confirm who is responsible for the attack on Oct. 17 until more information comes to light.
The conflict began on Oct. 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel from Gaza, followed by Israel declaring war and attacking and blockading Gaza, actions that resulted in the deaths of thousands of Israelis and Palestinians. Hamas' attacks came after months of surges in violence against Palestinians by the Israeli military.
After the hospital explosion, WHO indicated in a statement that the Al Ahli Arab was one of 20 hospitals that Israel had ordered to evacuate: “The hospital was one of 20 in the north of the Gaza Strip facing evacuation orders from the Israeli military.” We reached out to WHO for more details about the evacuation order and will update this post as more information comes to light.
On Oct. 18, 2023, Palestinian Anglican Archbishop Hosam Naoum, who oversees and runs the hospital, said that the Israeli military had called and texted hospital managers at least three times since Oct. 14, asking its patients and staff to leave the hospital compound, according to The New York Times.
Naoum said the warnings were particular to the hospital, and not part of Israel’s wider push telling civilians to leave northern Gaza for the south. “There were specific warnings to get out of the building,” he said.
Amnon Shefler, an Israeli military spokesman, appeared to refute this according to the Times, saying the calls to the hospital were part of a wider campaign to urge civilians to leave the north ahead of an expected Israeli invasion. Shefler added the hospital was not a target for the military. We have also reached out to the Israeli military to ask for a copy of the evacuation orders.
This was not the first airstrike on the hospital in question. The New York Times confirmed that the same hospital had been hit by rocket fire on Oct. 14, 2023, before the more recent attack, in which four people had been injured. The Anglican Church — which oversees the Ahli hospital — said in a statement the Oct. 14 airstrike was Israel’s responsibility: “The Ahli Hospital was hit by Israeli rocket fire last night, with four staff injured in the blast. Other hospitals have also been hit.”
In the same statement, the Archbishop of Canterbury, head of the church, appealed to Israel to reverse its evacuation order on hospitals in northern Gaza.
An unnamed senior health official in Gaza told Al Jazeera that Israel had fired two artillery shells as a “warning” at Al Ahli Arab Hospital, just days before the explosion. We could not determine if these were part of the Oct. 14, 2023, rocket fire.
Even before the airstrike that killed hundreds of people, the WHO and other human rights organizations were condemning Israel’s evacuation orders, calling them impossible. In an Oct. 14, 2023, statement, they emphasized the impact of such orders on hospitals, one of which was Al Ahli Arab (emphasis, ours):
[The WHO] strongly condemns Israel's repeated orders for the evacuation of 22 hospitals treating more than 2000 inpatients in northern Gaza. The forced evacuation of patients and health workers will further worsen the current humanitarian and public health catastrophe.
The lives of many critically ill and fragile patients hang in the balance. [...] Health facilities in northern Gaza continue to receive an influx of injured patients and are struggling to operate beyond maximum capacity. Some patients are being treated in corridors and outdoors in surrounding streets due to a lack of hospital beds.
Forcing more than 2000 patients to relocate to southern Gaza, where health facilities are already running at maximum capacity and unable to absorb a dramatic rise in the number of patients, could be tantamount to a death sentence.
The WHO also highlighted the impossibility of such evacuation orders in its Oct. 17 statement after the bombing.
In a news conference on Oct. 19, 2023, WHO Executive Director of the Health Emergencies Program Michael Ryan said:
Health is not a target, it can never be a target. It is not an excuse to say it was an accident. The parties to hostilities are not only directed to avoid attacking health services, they are directed to insure that they avoid attacking health services. [...] Damage to healthcare facilities, blasts on healthcare facilities, whether by accident or by intent, are a result of war and are prohibited under international law. Sometimes I hear these arguments around, well, it wasn’t intended, or it's that awful word “collateral damage.” Healthcare workers, healthcare facilities and patients are not collateral damage. They are protected under international law.
While no group has taken responsibility for the Oct. 17 attack, and while parties dispute the specificity of the evacuation orders, WHO has offered evidence indicating Israel issued evacuation orders to hospitals in the area, warning them of strikes. We will update this story if we gather more information.
Sources:
"Evacuation Orders by Israel to Hospitals in Northern Gaza Are a Death Sentence for the Sick and Injured." WHO, Oct. 14, 2023. https://www.who.int/news/item/14-10-2023-evacuation-orders-by-israel-to-hospitals-in-northern-gaza-are-a-death-sentence-for-the-sick-and-injured. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
“Gaza Hospitals Are ‘Facing Catastrophe’, Says Archbishop of Canterbury.” The Archbishop of Canterbury, Oct. 15, 2023. https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/news/news-and-statements/gaza-hospitals-are-facing-catastrophe-says-archbishop-canterbury. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
"How Has the Narrative Shifted since the Gaza Hospital Explosion?" Al Jazeera English, Oct. 18, 2023. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/18/what-is-israels-narrative-on-the-gaza-hospital-explosion. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
“Netanyahu, Gantz Agree to Form Emergency Unity Govt and War Cabinet.” France 24, 11 Oct. 2023, https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20231011-%F0%9F%94%B4-live-israeli-airstrikes-on-gaza-continue-death-toll-mounts-on-both-sides. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
"Newsroom." WHO. https://www.who.int/news-room. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
“Palestinians Flee Northern Gaza after Israel Orders 1 Million to Evacuate as Ground Attack Looms.” AP News, Oct. 13, 2023, https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-war-c8b4fc20e4fd2ef381d5edb7e9e8308c. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
“What We Know About the Explosion at the Hospital in Gaza.” The New York Times, 18 Oct. 2023. NYTimes.com, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/18/world/middleeast/gaza-hospital-israel-hamas-explained.html. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
“Two Palestinians Killed during Israeli Military Raid in West Bank Refugee Camp.” PBS NewsHour, 24 Sept. 2023, https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/two-palestinians-killed-during-israeli-military-raid-in-west-bank-refugee-camp. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
WHO Statement on Attack on Al Ahli Arab Hospital and Reported Large-Scale Casualties. https://www.who.int/news/item/17-10-2023-who-statement-on-attack-on-al-ahli-arab-hospital-and-reported-large-scale-casualties. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
"Why Israel’s Gaza Evacuation Order Is So Alarming." Human Rights Watch. 16 Oct. 2023, https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/10/16/why-israels-gaza-evacuation-order-so-alarming. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
Wrona, Aleksandra. “Is This a Real Photo of Part of the Gaza Strip Left in Ruins by Israeli Reprisal Attacks?” Snopes, 10 Oct. 2023, https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/gaza-strip-photo/. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
Wrona, Aleksandra. “Video Shows a Pro-Hamas Demonstration in Barcelona in October 2023?” Snopes, 9 Oct. 2023, https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/pro-hamas-demonstration-spain/. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
Updates:
This story was updated to say "hundreds" died in hospital strike, given contested numbers in different news reports.
Oct. 19, 2023: The story was amended to state that "hundreds" of people were killed from the explosion at hospital.
