US blames Hamas after Israel burned Palestinians alive in hospital

The spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, John Kirby, said on Monday without presenting evidence that Hamas was "operating near the hospital" where Palestinians were burned alive by Israeli strikes. 

Kirby said the White House has asked Israel "to do more to avoid civilian casualties" in the Gaza Strip, after Israeli strikes set on fire the Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah which killed four people and wounded scores of others. 

"The images and video of what appear to be displaced civilians burning alive following an Israeli air strike are deeply disturbing and we have made our concerns clear to the Israeli government," Kirby said.

"Israel has a responsibility to do more to avoid civilian casualties - and what happened here is horrifying, even if Hamas was operating near the hospital in an attempt to use civilians as human shields," added Kirby, without giving evidence of whether Hamas was indeed operating in the vicinity.