Israel Shares Misleading Aerial Scenes After the European Hospital Attack

Following a deadly Israeli strike on the European Hospital in Khan Yunis that killed at least 28 people, the Israeli military attempted to justify the attack by alleging it targeted a Hamas command and control center, backing its claim with misleading aerial footage.

Dozens Killed in Israeli Airstrike on European Hospital

Israeli airstrikes near the European Hospital in Khan Yunis killed at least 28 people, Gaza's rescue teams reported on Tuesday.

Gaza’s civil defence confirmed that Israeli attacks struck areas around the hospital in southern Gaza, leaving at least 28 people dead. The rescue team noted that they could not retrieve some bodies due to the intense bombardment, which scattered remains across the vicinity.

The agency also reported a second round of Israeli missiles targeted the same area, aiming to obstruct rescue efforts. It confirmed that Israeli forces “deliberately targeted anyone attempting to reach the wounded.”

Medical sources in Gaza said the European Hospital evacuated all patients and medical staff after Israeli airstrikes repeatedly struck the hospital’s courtyard and nearby zones on Tuesday and Wednesday.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, the ongoing Israeli offensive has killed at least 52,928 Palestinians and injured 119,846 since October 7, 2023.

Israel Claims Strike Targeted Hamas Command Center Inside Hospital

The Israeli military claimed it carried out a “precise strike” targeting Hamas operatives allegedly using an underground command and control center beneath the European Hospital compound in Khan Yunis.

Israeli media reported that the intended target was Mohammed Sinwar, believed to have taken over Hamas leadership in Gaza after the Israeli military assassinated his brother, Yahya, in October 2024.

Following the attack, official Israeli military accounts released a statement claiming they targeted “an underground terrorist infrastructure” beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis.

The translated statement reads, “The IDF and Shin Bet destroyed an underground terrorist infrastructure of the Hamas terrorist organization under the European Hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.”

Alongside the statement, the Israeli military published a video and a photo claiming to show the aftermath of the strike on the “Hamas’ underground infrastructure” beneath the European Hospital.

Misbar Finds Israeli Aerial Footage to Be Misleading

Misbar’s investigative team analyzed the aerial scenes Israel released after the strike on the European Hospital and found that the Israeli military misrepresented scenes of a nearby school as evidence of “Hamas infrastructure” beneath the hospital.

Despite the Hebrew caption on the image reading “The European Hospital in Khan Yunis after the attack,” the red-circled area does not match the actual European Hospital on the map.

In the accompanying video, the military also included captions such as “The underground infrastructure exposed after the attack” and “European Hospital,” further reinforcing the misleading narrative.

By cross-referencing the photo shared on the official Israeli military social media accounts with Google Maps, Misbar identified the location as a different building near the European Hospital, not the facility claimed in the photo.

Furthermore, Misbar’s team compared a frame from the video released by the Israeli military, which they claimed shows the European Hospital, with an aerial image from Google Maps showing a nearby school.

The video frame appears on the left side of the comparison image, while the Google Maps view of the school is on the right.

The comparison between the screenshots revealed that the two scenes are identical, with several visual similarities confirming that the location shown in the military’s footage is, in fact, a school, not the European Hospital, as Israel alleged.

Moreover, Misbar’s team used mapping tools to measure the actual distance between the European Hospital and the school featured in the Israeli military’s footage. The analysis revealed that the two sites are located hundreds of meters apart.

In addition, two sources confirmed to Misbar, after reviewing the map and imagery, that the structure the Israeli military identified as “Hamas’ command and control complex established beneath the European Hospital” actually shows Jenin Secondary School for Boys, which is meters away from the European Hospital buildings.

While the footage includes images of a collapsed tunnel route outside the hospital, allegedly resulting from a strike targeting infrastructure beneath it, this claim raises multiple red flags. Thermal imaging is unlikely to detect a plain tunnel with such clarity.

Given these inconsistencies, the possibility that the footage was altered or misrepresented remains strong, especially considering the Israeli military's long-standing record of fabrications, particularly regarding alleged tunnel networks in Gaza.

Misbar’s investigative team has consistently debunked Israeli claims about active tunnels in Gaza. 

On April 22, former military minister Yoav Gallant admitted that the Israeli military released a misleading photo in an attempt to derail a potential prisoner exchange deal at the time.

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