Devastation in Gaza

Posts on X sent by Hananya Naftali, a digital aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stated: “Israeli Air Force struck a Hamas terrorist base inside a hospital in Gaza. “ The post was almost immediately deleted.

While Naftali alleged that the Israeli military purposefully targeted the hospital because it was being used as a Hamas base before he recanted, other officials have spouted that it was a rocket from either Hamas or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad that misfired.

At 9:04 p.m., the Israeli army posted on X that an "enemy" misfired missile was responsible for the damage. They included alleged video evidence of the attack, which visual investigations journalist at The New York Times, Aric Toler, noted was from around 8:00 p.m. — 40 minutes after the bombing of the hospital, which was first discussed by Israeli officials at 7:20 p.m.

The post was quickly edited to remove the video, but earlier versions of the message still show the video with incorrect timestamps, according to Al Jazeera.

As Al Jazeera noted, it would not be the first time the Israeli military has lied about their involvement in civilian deaths, following the death of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. The Israeli government first denied a role in her death, but later confessed after multiple independent investigations confirmed that only an Israeli soldier could have killed her.

The IDF has admitted to lying in the past about their responsibility in the deaths of civilians.

Shortly after the explosion, Netanyahu deleted a message from his X account that many criticized for dehumanizing the Palestinian people. It stated: “This is a struggle between the children of light and the children of darkness, between humanity and the law of the jungle."

In a statement issued Tuesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) also noted that there had already been over 51 attacks on healthcare facilities in Gaza since the start of the conflict Oct. 7. Fifteen healthcare workers have been killed, and 27 injured in Israeli airstrikes.