Bombing of hospital in Gaza 'might yet prove to be a war crime' — Leo Varadkar

Palestinians carry belongings as they leave al-Ahli hospital, which they were using as a shelter, in Gaza City. Picture: AP /Abed Khaled

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has condemned the bombing of a hospital in Gaza and said it was not yet known if the attack was deliberate and who carried it out.

He said an independent investigation was needed into the atrocity.

It comes after US president Joe Biden said he was “outraged” by the explosion on Tuesday which Hamas said killed hundreds of people. Mr Biden said the explosion appears to have been carried out “by the other team” and not the Israeli military.

Speaking during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil, the Taoiseach said he wanted to “condemn unequivocally” the attack and said it violated the rules of war and violated basic humanity and “might yet prove to be a war crime”. 

“We do not yet know the details or the facts about the attack, whether it was deliberate or intentional, whether it was carried out by the Israeli defence forces, or Palestinian Hamas or Islamic Jihad, and we do need an independent investigation if that is at all possible.

“But what is certain is the Palestinian civilians here are the innocent victims.” 

Mr Varadkar said the Government was calling for three things to happen immediately: an immediate humanitarian ceasefire to be observed by all parties to the conflict; for Hamas to release its hostages immediately without precondition and to lay down its arms; and for Israel, to turn back on power and water and to allow humanitarian corridors to be created ”to relieve the extraordinary burden on the people of Palestine who are suffering today”. 

“What is clear is that there is no military solution to this conflict,” he said.

Palestinians inspect the damage at al-Ahli hospital, in Gaza City on Wednesday. The Hamas-run Health Ministry says an Israeli airstrike caused the explosion that killed hundreds at al-Ahli, but the Israeli military says it was a misfired Palestinian rocket. Picture: AP/Abed Khaled

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald called on Mr Varadkar to call out and condemn the actions of Israel.

Mr Varadkar said: “We know from recent history and indeed the history of the past few decades, that both the Israeli defence forces and Hamas and Islamic Jihad are all capable of terrible atrocities. We know that. 

"And as a Government, we condemn them unreservedly and unequivocally.” 

Speaking to reporters, Tánaiste and Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin condemned the attack against the Gaza hospital, saying watching the scenes “is quite horrific”.

“It really illustrates the enormous toll of this war between Israel and Hamas is having on civilian population in Gaza and of course on the civilian population in Israel,” Mr Martin said.

In respect of any specific incident, it's very difficult for us at this distance to make any judgment call of who is responsible in terms of this attack on the hospital.” 

On the comments made by Mr Biden, Mr Martin said the US president may have more access to information and intelligence than the Irish Government would have.

“The takeaway for me though, however, is that we now need a humanitarian ceasefire,” Mr Martin said, adding vital aid and supplies were needed in Gaza.

“We do need to get supplies to the hospitals to treat the injured and we need to get food and fuel in there also.” 

Meanwhile, Mr Varadkar told Labour leader Ivana Bacik the Tánaiste is working on an all-party motion that he believed would be beneficial and would send a “very strong statement beyond” the Houses of the Oireachtas and to the world more widely.

He said the statement needed to be balanced and needed to condemn atrocities committed by all.