KEY POINTS
- A devastating blast at al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza has killed roughly 500 people.
- Hamas and the Palestinian Authority have blamed the blast on an Israeli airstrike, claims Israel denies.
- The prime minister says the government condemns “indiscriminate attacks and targeting of civilian infrastructure”.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called for the protection of civilians in Gaza in the wake of a deadly hospital blast that killed roughly 500 people.
Albanese condemns ‘indiscriminate attacks’ against civilians
Albanese said protection of civilian lives must come first and respect for international humanitarian law was “paramount”.
“We condemn any indiscriminate attacks and targeting of civilian infrastructure, including hospitals,” he said.
Israel denies responsibility for hospital blast
Israel’s military denied responsibility, blaming a failed rocket launch by a Palestinian militant group, Islamic Jihad.
The group denied that any of its rockets were involved in the hospital blast, saying it did not have any activity in or around Gaza City at that time.
Israel has
that controls Gaza after Hamas gunmen killed 1,300 people, mainly civilians,
– the deadliest single day in Israel’s 75-year history.
Health authorities in Gaza say at least 3,000 people have been killed in Israel’s 11-day bombardment.
