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In the dark of early evening in Gaza, reports emerged of an explosion at Gaza City's al-Ahli hospital. Al-Ahli was crowded both with victims of 10 days of Israeli airstrikes and with families and others who have taken refuge on hospital grounds.
Video that The Associated Press confirmed as being from the hospital showed an orange ball of fire and flames engulfing the building and grounds.
The video showed the outside of the hospital, where countless Palestinian families had been camping out. Torn bodies covered the grass, with slain children lying among dead adults.
Gaza's Hamas-run Health Ministry blamed an Israeli airstrike, and said it killed at least 500 people.
Israeli authorities soon after denied involvement, saying a misfired Palestinian rocket appeared to blame.
Outraged over the hospital blast, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Jordan's King Abdullah II announced they were pulling out of a planned Arab summit Wednesday with President Joe Biden.
The White House and Jordan's government announced within hours of the attack that Biden's meeting with Arab leaders was off.
Jordan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Egypt, and other Arab nations condemned the hospital attack, or declared days of national mourning. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi declared the hospital explosion “a clear violation of international law ... and humanity.”
Protests erupted in some Arab cities. In Beirut, protesters roamed the city on motorcycles and gathered outside the French embassy and a UN facility, in protests against the international community's response to the civilian deaths in Gaza. Throngs of Jordanians gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Amman.
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