Rashida Tlaib Doubles Down on Debunked Hospital Bombing Claim, Says She Can’t ‘Uncritically Accept’ Israel’s ‘Denials’

Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan doubled down on claims that Israel bombed a hospital in Gaza, saying she can’t accept Israeli “denials” despite the claims being debunked by multiple reports.

Tlaib and Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota posted tweets that echoed claims by Hamas that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) bombed a hospital in Gaza, killing over 500 people. The claims were later debunked and an assessment by US intelligence indicted that a rocket fired by Islamic Jihad was responsible for the damage and deaths caused by the blast.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib *still* doesn’t believe that Israel didn’t bomb the hospital in Gaza — doubling down on her misinformation in interview today. pic.twitter.com/sURiyCUqB6

— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) October 23, 2023

“Media outlets and third-party analysts have raised doubts about claims and evidence offered by both Israel and the Gaza Ministry of Health, and I agree with the United Nations that an independent investigation is necessary,” Tlaib said in a statement released Monday. “I cannot uncritically accept Israel’s denials of responsibility as fact, especially in light of confirmation from the World Health Organization that Israel has bombed numerous medical facilities in Gaza and reports from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society of ongoing threats from the Israeli military to evacuate hospitals.”

The rocket fired by Islamic Jihad was a misfire that hit the parking lot of the hospital, according to multiple media reports. A spokesman for Islamic Jihad denied that they were responsible for the blast, according to The New York Times.

“Both the Israeli and United States governments have long, documented histories of misleading the public about wars and war crimes—like last year’s Israeli military assassination of Shireen Abu Akleh and the false claims of weapons of mass destruction that led our country into the Iraq War—and cannot clear themselves of responsibility without an independent international investigation,” Tlaib continued. “This debate should not distract us from the urgent need for a ceasefire to save innocent civilian lives.”

Democratic Rep. Brad Schneider of Illinois ripped Tlaib for repeating the claims Thursday in a series of posts on Twitter, noting that she repeated the claim at a Wednesday rally calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. Tlaib and other left-wing members of the House of Representatives known as “The Squad” released statements calling for a ceasefire almost immediately after Hamas launched a deadly terrorist attack against multiple locations in southern Israel Oct. 7, killing at least 1,400 people and taking over 200 hostages.

In May, Tlaib held an event in a Senate hearing room that called the founding of Israel a “catastrophe” after then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy blocked Tlaib from holding the event in the Capitol building. Tlaib also invoked apartheid when discussing Israel in 2021 and 2022 posts on Twitter.