The White House has accused Hamas of “gruesome propaganda” after Israeli forces killed over 50 Palestinians on the border between Gaza and Israel, as the US celebrated the transfer of its embassy to Jerusalem. This is a “gruesome and unfortunate propaganda attempt” on part of Hamas, deputy White House press secretary Raj Shah told reporters on Monday, adding that Israel has the “right to defend itself.”
“We believe that Hamas as an organization is engaged in cynical action leading to these deaths,” Shah added.
Matt Lee @APDiploWriter
WASHINGTON (AP) — White House says responsibility for #Gaza deaths 'rests squarely with Hamas,' supports #Israel's 'right to defend itself' .
Hamas, or the Islamic Resistance Movement, is the democratically elected government of the Gaza strip. Israel considers it a terrorist organization.
Palestinians have gathered along the fence separating Gaza from Israel for the past six weeks, as part of the Great March of Return protests. Monday was the deadliest day yet, with 52 people killed and more than 2,700 injured, according to the latest figures from the Palestinian Health Ministry. Among the wounded are 78 women and 203 children, the ministry said.
The Palestinian authority denounced the deaths as a “terrible massacre” perpetrated “by the forces of the Israeli occupation,” and called for an immediate international intervention to prevent further deaths.
Poster Comment:
"They MADE us kill them!" -- Nodding Yahoo