Family of Hamas hostage Rimon Kirsht issues tearful plea
Joe Biden has told Israelis not to make the “mistakes” that US did after the September 11 2001 terror attacks, as he warned its citizens not to be consumed by rage over the Hamas assault that killed more than 1,400 people.
In a powerful speech in Tel Aviv, the US president also said the Hamas attack brought “back memories of the Holocaust”, and compared Israel’s devastation to the aftermath of 9/11, which killed nearly 3,000 people.
Mr Biden blamed an “errant rocket” fired from Gaza for an explosion last night on a hospital feared to have killed hundreds of people, saying his information was based on US defence department sources.
“The terrorists will not win. Freedom will win,” he declared as he announced a new $100m aid package to Gaza.
The Hamas-run health ministry said up to 500 people were killed in the hospital explosion, at the Al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital in northern Gaza.
Hamas blamed the blast on an Israeli air strike; Israel said the fire was caused by a failed rocket launched from within the enclave by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
