The uncertainty surrounding the explosion at a Gaza hospital compound, fueled by conflicting versions from Hamas and Israel, highlights how disinformation is a powerful propaganda weapon in war, experts say.
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On Wednesday, the two protagonists of the armed conflict and their allies again disagreed over the origin of the shot that hit the compound of the al-Ahli Arab hospital in downtown Gaza.
The United States National Security Council concluded that Israel was not responsible, relying, among other things, on video footage of the incident and its intelligence.
Photo AFP
“Based on the information we have so far, it looks like this [la frappe] or the result of a runaway rocket fired by a terrorist group in Gaza,” President Joe Biden said during his visit to Israel on Wednesday, claiming to have compelling evidence from the Pentagon.
Still, angry protesters continued to take to the streets in Lebanon, Iran and the occupied West Bank on Wednesday.
Photo AFP
Many Arab countries, regardless of whether they had signed peace with Israel and Iran or not, blamed the Israeli army for the shooting, although the Jewish state denied this.
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Number of deaths disputed
In addition to many questions about the tragic event, the number of deaths is also controversial, as is what was actually affected by the detonation.
Satellite images of the blast site released Wednesday show that “the likely impact zone” occurred in the hospital parking lot. AFP photos
On Wednesday, the health ministry of Gaza’s ruling Hamas said 471 people had died in an attack it attributed to the Israeli army, information that was repeated by numerous international media outlets.
However, a European intelligence source consulted by AFP reported only “a few dozen deaths” on Wednesday instead.
Satellite images of the detonation site, which occurred in the dark, were released Wednesday by Maxar Technologies. According to the company, “the likely impact area” occurred in the hospital parking lot, while the building suffered “no significant structural damage.”
There was no evidence of the presence of hundreds of people in the parking lot where the shot landed, the European intelligence source also told the news agency.
However, numerous testimonies from media who visited the scene on Wednesday reported utter chaos in the hospital and horrific injuries as the collection of bodies continued.
propaganda
Houchang Hassan-Yari, a professor at the Royal Military College of Canada, is convinced that this incident is a war propaganda stunt by Hamas.
Photo AFP
He said the group that controls the Gaza Strip has been struggling with its image since its Oct. 7 attack and “had to do something” to make the Israeli army look bad and also try to derail Joe’s visit. Biden, who tried to mobilize neighboring countries to Israel’s cause.
“Arab countries began to ask questions about the logic of the Hamas attack, the number of Israeli dead, but also the hostages, which include women, babies and the elderly,” believes Mr. Hassan-Yari.
“Who can benefit from knowing that there were 500 deaths as opposed to knowing that there were 50 deaths? » says Simon Thibault, professor of political science at the University of Montreal. For some analysts, that would put pressure on Joe Biden.”
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On social media
Mr. Thibault also emphasizes that disinformation can easily circulate on social media, including on X, owned by Elon Musk, who since his arrival has ensured that control over the content published there is easier.
Several heads of state reacted strongly to the hospital incident, including Justin Trudeau.
For Mr Hassan-Yari, it is “really irresponsible” of them to “get involved in this propaganda without taking the necessary distance and studying the matter”.
The disinformation since the beginning of this war has also been passed on by Israel. A few days after the Hamas attack, a spokesman for the Jewish state government claimed that babies had been beheaded, information later passed on by Joe Biden. However, no evidence was later provided to support these claims, and the American and Israeli governments subsequently admitted that they could not confirm their veracity.
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