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Middle East conflict

US masterminded attack on Gaza hospital, Iranian news agency says

According to the media, the Americans allegedly developed a plan to carry out a "powerful lethal strike" against a certain facility in Gaza that was supposed to be crowded with people

DUBAI, October 18. /TASS/. The US military masterminded the attack on a civilian facility in the Gaza Strip to prevent a potential Israeli ground offensive against the enclave, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported, citing sources.

According to the agency, "there are whispers" that the October 17 attack on the al-Ahli Hospital, in which hundreds of people were killed, was allegedly carried out by Israel in accordance with a plan developed by the military of the US Central Command (CENTCOM). Agency sources said the US and Israeli leaders were shocked when militants of the Palestinian Hamas movement launched their operation on October 7. Subsequently, the US repeatedly warned Israel that a ground operation in Gaza could cost the country’s army and authorities dearly, the agency said.

According to Tasnim's sources, the Americans allegedly developed a plan to carry out a "powerful lethal strike" against a certain facility in Gaza that was supposed to be crowded with people. In this way, they allegedly wanted to help Israel sway public opinion against launching a ground offensive. The al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City was chosen as the target, Tasnim reported. The Israeli military allegedly used anti-bunker bombs with high explosive power.

According to Palestinian information, 471 people were killed and 342 injured in an attack on the al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza on October 17. The Palestinian side blamed the Israeli air force for the incident, while Israel said that the explosion at the hospital was caused by a failed rocket launch by the Islamic Jihad group. A mourning period was declared in Palestine, Syria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq and Lebanon. In the wake of the attack, a four-party summit in Amman, set to include Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his US counterpart Joe Biden, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and Jordan's King Abdullah II, was canceled.

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Middle East conflict

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