By Iclal Turan
WASHINGTON (AA) - The US said Tuesday that no civilians were reported to have been harmed in an Israeli raid inside a hospital in the West Bank, contradicting an earlier report.
It added that hospitals “do lose some of their protections if they are being used for the planning of terrorist operations," under international humanitarian law.
When asked about the raid inside the Ibn Sina hospital in Jenin City in the northern occupied West Bank, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the US "strongly" urges caution whenever operations have the potential to affect civilians and civilian installations, including hospitals
"We do recognize the very real security challenges Israel faces, and its legitimate right to defend its people and its territory from terrorism," he said while noting that Israel needs to conduct its operations in full compliance with international humanitarian law.
Miller said the US has yet to assess the raid at the hospital.
But the Palestinian news agency, WAFA, said Israeli soldiers, disguised themselves as doctors, nurses and civilians, and raided the hospital, killing three Palestinians, including two brothers, with gun silencers.
The agency cited hospital sources.
The three slain Palestinians are identified as Mohammad and Basil Al-Ghazzawi and Mohammad Jalamna.
Basil Al-Ghazzawi received treatment in the hospital when the Israeli soldiers attacked, according to WAFA.