Defense expert refutes Israeli military claim about hospital attack in Gaza

ANKARA

A defense expert on Wednesday dismissed the Israeli military's claim that the hospital attack in Gaza, which killed 471 people, including women and children, was caused by a rocket fired from within the coastal strip, calling it unrealistic and asserting that if it was fired from Gaza, Israel's Iron Dome air defense system should have been activated.

Murat Aslan, senior research associate at the Foundation for Political, Economic, and Social Research (SETA) and associate professor at Hasan Kalyoncu University, spoke to Anadolu in an interview about the bombing of the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza on Tuesday evening.

Aslan said, while referring to various assessments made regarding the munition responsible for the attack, that "in attacks targeting populated areas, munition fuses can be time-delayed to explode 50-100 meters above the ground before hitting the target."

"This increases the impact of the attack. Looking at the area affected by the explosion and the traces left on the ground after the explosion in the attack on the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza, it can be suggested that the munition was set to explode prematurely in order to achieve an explosion in the air for a greater impact. This seems to have ensured a wider area of effect for the explosion," he said.

When asked about the Israeli military claim that the attack was caused by a rocket fired from Gaza by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, Aslan said "If a rocket of such magnitude that could cause such extensive damage were to be fired, the (Israeli) Iron Dome air defense system would have to be activated.

"It would be very difficult for the Islamic Jihad to execute such a precise strike even from the West Bank without being intercepted by the Israeli air defense system.

"If the rocket's caliber is reduced, the deaths of more than 500 people are no longer possible." Furthermore, given that the rocket is unguided and follows a sloping trajectory, a vertical descent onto the hospital appears unlikely," he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Gaza Health Ministry revised the casualty figures, stating that at least 471 people were killed and 342 others were injured in an Israeli airstrike on Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza late Tuesday.

Aslan also dismissed Israel's claim that the attack was caused by a "howitzer munition," saying, "This possibility is not realistic due to the required range."

"A howitzer munition has a radius of 30-50 meters. It cannot, however, result in such a high casualty count," he said.

He emphasized that there is a high likelihood that the munition used in the attack was dropped from a warplane.

"Therefore, the possibility of Israel using the MK82 bomb, which they have used before and can guide through a kit, is emphasized.

“To provide a definitive statement, the examination of munition fragments and research in the area are necessary. However, the current situation makes this difficult."