Top Italian diplomat says Gaza hospital blast took 50 lives at most, Hamas to blame

The strike on the Al-Ahli Hospital in the Gaza Strip killed around 50 people, and not in excess of 470, as was alleged by the Palestinian authorities, Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Tuesday.

"[The death toll was around] 50, not 500 and the responsibility for the massacre rests on Hamas rather than Israel," he said in an interview with the SkyTg24 television channel.

Israel’s response "to the foul attack it came under has been proportionate," he stressed.