DaysofPal – Tel Aviv’s outrage over a missile strike near Soroka Hospital in southern Israel has drawn widespread criticism and accusations of hypocrisy, as Israel continues its systematic destruction of Gaza’s hospitals in a war that has lasted over 21 months.
Condemnation of Iran, accusations of “war crime”
On Thursday, Israel accused Iran of launching a direct missile strike on Soroka Hospital in Beersheba, calling it a “terrorist crime” and a blatant war crime. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Tehran had targeted “civilian residents in the heart of Israel,” while Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the attack was “a war crime” and vowed retaliation.
Israeli Sports Minister Miki Zohar described the attackers as “the most despicable people on earth,” accusing Iran of crossing moral boundaries by targeting a hospital. “Only the scum of the earth and cowards launch missiles at children lying in hospitals,” he wrote.
Iran denies, says strike targeted military base near hospital
Iran quickly denied the Israeli narrative, clarifying that its missile targeted a military intelligence headquarters adjacent to the hospital, not the hospital itself. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps stated that the strike hit its intended target “precisely and accurately,” and Iranian state media noted that Soroka Hospital suffered collateral damage from the explosion’s blast wave.
Some reports on Iranian and independent media suggested that a secret military command center was operating beneath the hospital, possibly storing weapons or hazardous materials previously relocated from targeted Israeli bases.
Israel Quiet on Its Own Hospital Bombings in Gaza and Iran
Critics have been quick to highlight Israel’s silence, or justification, when it comes to its own documented record of hospital bombings in Gaza and, more recently, in Iran.
On Monday, Iranian outlets reported that Israeli warplanes struck Al-Farabi Hospital in Kermanshah, and the Hakim Children’s Hospital in Tehran was reportedly hit just days earlier. The Iranian Ministry of Health has confirmed these attacks.
But the contrast is most stark in Gaza.
Israel has rendered dozens of hospitals in Gaza inoperable.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel’s military has bombed, besieged, and destroyed hospitals across Gaza as part of what Palestinians and international observers have increasingly called a genocide. Among the most heavily hit:
– Al-Shifa Medical Complex: Gaza’s largest hospital was raided, bombed, and rendered non-functional. More than 300 bodies were found after Israeli forces withdrew in March 2024.
– Nasser Medical Complex: Repeatedly targeted, including the assassination of Dr. Ismail Barhoum. Now lies in ruins.
– Al-Ahli Arab Hospital (Baptist Hospital): Bombed on October 17, 2023, killing 500 patients and displaced people.
– Kamal Adwan Hospital: Stormed in December 2024. Staff were ordered to strip at gunpoint.
– Al-Amal Hospital: Forced evacuations and closures under Israeli military pressure.
– Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital: The Strip’s only cancer center, bombed into total closure.
– Al-Rantisi Children’s Hospital: Its dialysis unit was destroyed, resulting in the death of pediatric patients.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently confirmed that at least 94% of Gaza’s hospitals have been damaged or destroyed, with only 19 of 36 partially operational, and even those teetering on collapse due to fuel shortages, lack of staff, and unrelenting attacks.
The Gaza Health Ministry has warned that the remaining hospitals may be forced to shut down within days due to Israel’s blockade on fuel deliveries, despite these facilities relying entirely on generators. International and UN agencies have reportedly been denied access to hospital fuel depots, now labeled “red zones” by the Israeli army.
Essential lifelines in Gaza are collapsing, according to UNRWA and OCHA, as water is drying up, ambulances are immobilized, and almost half of all vital medical supplies are running low.
Backlash on social media: “hypocrisy on full display”
The Israeli government’s condemnation of the Soroka incident sparked widespread criticism online, where users accused it of staggering hypocrisy. “If this is a war crime, then Israel is the greatest war criminal alive,” one user wrote. “You can’t spend a year bombing hospitals and then cry foul when it happens to you.”
Palestinian journalist Hamza Yusuf mocked Western media’s double standard: “No ‘health officials say’?” ” No ‘according to locals’? No ‘Likud-run health ministry claims’? Interesting.”
Irish journalist Barry Malone added, “The difference in reporting on hospitals being hit in Israel versus Gaza should be studied in journalism schools. The bias is that blatant.”
Others argued that Israel had “normalized” the bombing of hospitals through its own actions in Gaza, paving the way for such attacks to become militarily and diplomatically tolerated—until it happens to them.
A Pattern of Impunity
While Tel Aviv invokes international law to decry attacks on its territory, its own track record suggests a pattern of impunity. For nearly two years, hospitals in Gaza have been turned into graveyards under Israeli fire. And as the war spreads into regional theaters, critics say Israel can no longer pretend to be both an aggressor and a victim.
Shortlink for this post: https://daysofpalestine.ps/?p=64947
