Israel denies Gaza hospital strike and claims it has evidence Islamic Jihads fired barrage of rockets

Israel has denied responsibility for an explosion at a hospital in Gaza on Tuesday (17 October) that killed hundreds of people.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said it would produce evidence that the deadly strike was caused by Palestinian, not Israeli fire.

“A barrage of rockets was fired by terrorists in Gaza, passing in close proximity to the Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza, at the time it was hit,” a spokesperson for the IDF said.

“Intelligence from a few sources that we have in our hands indicates that the Islamic Jihad is responsible for the failed rocket launch which hit the hospital.”

The health authorities in Gaza said that an airstrike had killed at least 500 people, many of them women and children.

The Independent has not been able to verify the IDF claim.