Blinken Says He Hasn’t Seen Evidence to Support Israel’s Claim on AP Building

Netanyahu said Israel shared intel with the US about the media building destroyed in an airstrike

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended Israel’s bombing of a building in Gaza where offices for international media outlets were located, including The Associated Press, Al Jazeera, and Middle East Eye. Netanyahu claimed there was an office in the building used by Hamas and said that information was passed to the US through intelligence channels.

On Monday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after Israel bombed the building, the US requested information about the strike. “Shortly after the strike we did request additional details regarding the justification for it,” he said at a press briefing in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Blinken said he “wouldn’t want to weigh in on intelligence matters” but added that he hadn’t seen any evidence to back up Netanyahu’s claim. “I have not seen any information provided,” he said.

When asked about the bombing, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki wouldn’t say if President Biden had seen intelligence on it. “I’m not going to be in a position now or ever of committing or confirming who has or hasn’t seen intelligence,” she said.

While the US isn’t exactly pushing back on Israel’s bombing of the media building, it is one of the only strikes that is getting significant attention from the Biden administration and more scrutiny from the Western press.

Since Israel began its new bombing campaign last Monday, Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 212 Palestinians, including 61 children. The US has remained silent on the killing of Palestinian children. In one attack on Saturday, Israel bombed a civilian home in the al-Shati refugee camp, killing 10 people; two women and eight children.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.