Israel Military: "Hospital Explosion Caused by Islamic Jihad's Rocket Misfire"... Hamas Intelligence Agent Recording Released

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) revealed intercepted audio recordings in which Hamas intelligence agents mentioned a misfire, stating there is no trace of an Israeli airstrike at the Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza Strip. The IDF accused Hamas of knowing this yet blaming the Israeli military and inflating the number of casualties caused by the explosion.

Daniel Hagari, Chief Spokesperson of the Israel Defense Forces
Photo by Yonhap News

On the 18th (local time), according to major foreign media including BBC, Daniel Hagari, the chief spokesperson for the Israeli military, disclosed videos and photos taken over Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City before and after the explosion during a briefing. Hagari explained, "If the explosion had been caused by an IDF airstrike, there would have been craters or structural damage to the buildings at the site," adding, "No such traces were found."

Hagari also maintained the previous position that the explosion at Al-Ahli Hospital was caused by a rocket misfire from another Palestinian armed group, Islamic Jihad. He explained that at around 6:59 PM the previous day, Islamic Jihad fired about ten rockets from a cemetery near the hospital, and at the same time, reports of an explosion at the hospital in Gaza City were received.

Hagari claimed there is also intercepted communication of Islamic Jihad operatives discussing the rocket launch failure, and added that the IDF plans to share this analysis with the United States and other countries.

On the same day, the IDF released intercepted audio on its official X (formerly Twitter) account, which was obtained at the time of the explosion. According to the recording, Operative A says, "This is the first time I've seen a missile fall like this," to which B replies, "They say this is from Islamic Jihad." When A asks, "Who said that?" B explains, "Looking at the missile fragments, it seems like it’s not Israeli but from this area." Later, A’s voice is heard saying, "They fired this from the cemetery behind the hospital, and it fell there by accident."

The previous afternoon, a massive explosion at Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, northern Gaza Strip governed by Hamas, killed hundreds of civilians.

Hamas condemned it as a "horrific massacre" and a "clear war crime," claiming at least 500 deaths due to an Israeli airstrike, but Israel insists it was caused by an Islamic Jihad rocket misfire, continuing the dispute over responsibility.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.