The White House has stated that it wants “answers” from Israel regarding the discovery of mass graves in two hospitals in the Gaza Strip destroyed during the military offensive against the enclave and has stressed the need for a “thorough” and “transparent” investigation. “about these events.
“The information is very worrying. We have been in contact, at multiple levels, with the Israeli Government,” said White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. “We want answers. We want to understand exactly what happened,” he said at a press conference.
“We have seen public comments from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on this issue, but we want to know the details about the circumstances,” he said. “We want it to be investigated exhaustively and transparently so that everyone, and also the United States, can have a comprehensive response,” she concluded.
The authorities of the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), have reported the discovery of more than 320 bodies in graves in the Naser Hospital in the city of Khan Younis (south), while another 30 bodies have been found. been exhumed in the facilities of the Al Shifa Hospital, in Gaza City (north).
The Israeli Army has stated that the accusations are “completely unfounded” and argued that during the period in which its troops were at the Naser Hospital as part of their raid they examined the mortal remains of bodies buried by Palestinians “as part of the efforts to locate the hostages.
For his part, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, was “horrified” on Tuesday by the information about the discovery of these graves and called for an “independent, effective and transparent” investigation into these findings. . “Given the existing climate of impunity, it must include international investigators,” he said.