Hamas rockets fall short, strike Gaza hospital, refugee camp

TEL AVIV -- The Gaza Strip’s main hospital and the third largest Palestinian refugee camp were both struck by failed rocket attacks launched by Gaza terrorists, the Israel Defense Forces told WND today.

The rockets were aimed at Israeli residential neighborhoods near the Gaza Strip but fell short and hit Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital and the Al-Shati refugee camp instead, a senior IDF spokesperson said.

Several major media outlets immediately reported Israel was behind the strikes just outside the Al-Shifa hospital, based solely on Palestinian claims and before any official IDF reaction.

NBC News was the first English-language media outlet to run with the story reporting from Gaza that “Israeli strikes hit within yards of Gaza's main hospital as well as at a refugee camp on Monday, leaving at least 30 dead and wounded.”

The lead sentence stated as fact that Israel was behind the strikes.

NBC News added in the second sentence the attack near the Al-Shifa Hospital “caused some damage to the outpatient clinic, according to witnesses including an NBC News crew on the ground in the area.”

The news agency reported the IDF could not be immediately reached for clarification.

Canada’s CBC News reported: “Israeli airstrikes hit the compound of Gaza City's main hospital and a nearby park Monday, causing casualties, according to the Gaza police operations room and a Palestinian health official.”

The CBC did not report that the Gaza police force and the territory's main health ministry are run by Hamas.

The report said the IDF had no immediate comment.

The Shifa Hospital, located in the North Rimal district of Gaza, is one of the main receiving centers for those wounded in the current Israel Air Force bombardments of Gaza City.

Israel in the 1980s refurbished the hospital as part of an outreach effort to improve relations with Palestinians. Part of the Israeli reconstruction included a large underground cement basement with room for offices.

The facility was originally a British Army barracks in the 1940s before becoming a hospital. It was transformed by Egypt in the 1950s to a larger complex with more medical offerings.