Protesters Accuse Biden of 'Genocide' as Israel Forces Enter Shifa Hospital

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators outside the White House accused Joe Biden of "genocide," just hours before Israeli troops entered Gaza's largest hospital amid claims it houses a massive Hamas command center.

Protesters waving Palestinian flags and many wearing a keffiyeh, a traditional scarf, on Tuesday called for a ceasefire and chanted: "Biden, Biden you can't hide, we charge you with genocide" and "not another dollar for Israel's crimes," footage posted on social media showed.

Newsweek approached the White House via email for comment on Wednesday.

Since about 1,500 Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants staged a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, killing an estimated 1,200 people, including many civilians, Israel has conducted an intensive campaign of air strikes on Gaza and a subsequent ground offensive, with the objective of eliminating Hamas, which runs the territory. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, more than 11,200 Palestinians have been killed, the Associated Press reported.

Israel's intervention in Gaza has sparked widespread pro-Palestinian protests across the globe and in the U.S., many of which have called for a ceasefire. Israel has consistently refused such a move and commentators have said a ceasefire would give the well-entrenched militants time to regroup.

After Biden called for humanitarian pauses, Israel told the U.S. that there would be four-hour daily halts to its offensive to allow for the movement of aid and civilians.

Accusations that Israel was committing genocide have been rebuffed by the White House, among others, with national security spokesperson John Kirby saying: "You can't look at what is happening in Gaza and say that it fits the definition of genocide." He added: "That is an irresponsible way of describing this."

Israel has forewarned Palestinian civilians of attacks and urged them to evacuate while also attempting to supply another hospital in Gaza with fuel.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed they had raided the Shifa Hospital, on the western side of Gaza City, early on Wednesday morning. Mohammed Zaqout, the director of hospitals in Gaza, told the AP that tanks had entered the compound and that soldiers were in some of the hospital buildings.

"They are screaming," he said. "It's a very terrifying situation...we can do nothing for the patients but pray."

In an operational update, the IDF said it was carrying out "a precise and targeted operation against Hamas in a specified area" within the hospital, "based on intelligence information and an operational necessity."

It added that it had also sent in medical teams and Arabic speakers "with the intent that no harm is caused to the civilians being used by Hamas as human shields." It later said that medical supplies including incubators and baby food had been delivered to the hospital, providing images of the packages—though the location of the images could not be immediately verified.

"Instead of treating the ill, Hamas uses hospitals for terrorism," an IDF spokesperson said. "This sick exploitation of the Gazan people must be stopped."

Israel has long claimed that Hamas puts the civilian population of Gaza in harm's way and uses civilian institutions such as hospitals and schools to house military targets to maximize casualties and the international outcry over military interventions. Palestinian rights groups say Israel has unnecessarily endangered innocent lives as it seeks to eliminate the militant group, something which Israeli officials have denied.

Israel hasn't yet provided visual evidence for its claim that a Hamas center of operations was located underneath the Shifa Hospital, while Hamas and hospital staff have refuted the accusation.

On Tuesday, Kirby said U.S. intelligence suggested Hamas and Islamic Jihad used hospitals including Shifa and tunnels beneath them "to conceal and to support their military operations and to hold hostages." Some 240 captives are thought to be held by militants in Gaza.

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