The White House on Monday sought to clarify comments from President Joe Biden that hospitals “must be protected” in Gaza.
“Well, you know, I have not been reluctant expressing in my concern with what's going on, and it’s my hope and expectation that there will be less intrusive action relative to the hospitals, we’re in contact with the Israelis,” Biden had said earlier.
The President added that there is an effort to take “this pause to deal with the release of prisoners, and that's being negotiated as well, and the Qataris are engaged, so I remain somewhat hopeful, but the hospitals must be protected.”
John Kirby, the National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, later explained that Biden was not being critical of Israel but was rather discussing the difficulties that the IDF faces while operating in Gazan hospitals, which are being used by Hamas as terror headquarters.
Kirby said, according to CNN, that Biden was referring to "this extra burden that faces the IDF as they go into Gaza – because Hamas does shelter themselves behind civilian infrastructure."
This includes places like hospitals, schools or tunnels under residential buildings, he said.
Hamas operating this way places civilians in Gaza at greater risk, which is a tough problem for the IDF when “legitimate targets” are buried inside civilian infrastructure, Kirby explained.
“It makes it much harder for any military force to go after those targets because the hospital itself ought to be — as the president said — ought to be protected. So, he's really talking about this incredibly difficult conundrum that Israeli military forces are facing right now,” Kirby said.
Meanwhile on Monday, IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari joined an operation inside the Rantisi Children's Hospital in Gaza, where he personally documented concrete evidence that Hamas uses hospitals as an instrument of war.
Hagari said that the IDF found signs that Hamas held hostages at the hospital and that while the IDF is investigating the matter, "we also have intelligence that verifies it."
Commenting on the findings, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said, “Tonight - the world got to see what we have known for years. The Hamas terrorist organization has cynically built a terror base underneath the ‘Rantisi’ hospital in Gaza, just as it does in additional hospitals and civilian institutions.”
“IDF troops revealed a Hamas command center underneath the hospital. Instead of finding medical equipment, they found ammunition, explosives, and clear signs that Israeli hostages had been held there - including babies,” he added.
“We will continue operating against Hamas - the ISIS of Gaza, and we will ensure that no terror base will be left untouched across Gaza. Any civilians located near such terror hotspots may be in danger and we call on them to evacuate to the safe zone in the southern region of Gaza,” the Defense Minister stressed.