(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Alteration of Site Proven; Not So for Pictures; Gaza Hospital [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-10-27 There has been major alterations of the site of the explosion and fire at the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza City. The site has been thoroughly cleaned up. But, the author hasn’t found any clear evidence of alteration of photographs from the site. In a previous diary about alteration of the site and its photographs, the author tried to show that both occurred. After obtaining and analyzing additional photographs and video of the site, the evidence given for the alteration of the site (number of craters) was found to be incorrect, but better evidence was found for this claim, and is presented below. Several commentators questioned the evidence presented for alteration of photographs. After reviewing the photographs presented and the commentators’ concerns, it is unclear if the photographs are showing alteration or they are showing linear defects caused by the picture processing to reduce the file size for publication. Since it isn’t possible to prove one or the other, these pictures were removed. No other suspect pictures were found, so the allegation of alteration of pictures has been dropped. The author thanks these commentators for their concerns. Furthermore, the previous diary has been taken down. The current diary is taking its place, partly to present new and stronger evidence for site alteration, and partly to correct the prior diary. The author sincerely apologies for the prior diary. The sources for the current diary are given at the end so that comments can be made about the sources. ALTERATION of SITE One of the first rules of any investigation of an explosion and fire is to preserve the site and the evidence it contains as much as possible until an on-site investigation can be performed by qualified professionals. This preservation means controlling access to the site, and bringing in investigators as quickly as possible. Instead, just the opposite was done. No professional investigators from inside or outside of Gaza were brought in to the author’s knowledge, despite the widespread interest and importance of understanding what happened and who was at fault. Instead, the site was thoroughly cleaned up. Furthermore, based upon the numerous pictures of people roaming around the site and the lack of any type of barriers, there appears to have been little to no site control. Proof of a thorough cleanup is shown in the two pictures below. The first one is people picking up the debris left by the explosion and fire from one of the two plaza’s in the courtyard. It is an expanded view of the photograph used as the title picture. The second picture is from Wednesday, October 19, two days after the event, showing clean patios and car parks. The only remains of the event visible in the picture is a crater in the roadway, and the burned out cars in the car park. People Picking Up Debris on the Day After the Explosion and Fire, Thereby Altering the Site and Removing Evidence. Clean Plazas and Car Park Two Days After the Explosion and Fire. Crater (Red Arrow) and Burned Out Cars Remain (There is only one crater from the explosion. The prior diary identified two craters, but a new (to the author) and better video showed that the two craters identified in the earlier diary were the same, but taken from different angles which gave the appearance of two different craters.) MEANING of the SITE ALTERATION The cleanup of the site prior to an on-site investigation by qualified professionals means that a definitive cause of the failure and who is responsible is less likely, but may still be possible. Without such an investigation, a definitive cause and responsibility is very unlikely. In the absence of such an investigation, the best that reasonably can be done is to determine the most likely cause of the failure and the party most likely responsible based upon the available evidence (both now and in the future). Given the highly politicized situation in Gaza, and the highly charged emotions involved, there are expected to be more than one most likely cause and responsible party, and that people will be arguing about this for the rest of their lives. There are already two most likely causes and responsible parties – an Islamic Jihad rocket malfunctioned and hit the hospital, and Israel fired a rocket at the hospital. SOURCES Prior Diary: “Was There Alteration of the Site & Photo at Gaza Hospital ?” by HLB, October 23, 2023. Diary has been taken down. Video of the Site: https://bellingcat-archive.nyc3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/https-www-instagram-com-reel-cyii76mav17-igshid-mzrlodbinwflza-3d-3d/733952f2-cda7-4b.mp4 This is the best video of the site the author has seen so far. It was posted on instagram and is available from Bellingcat at the link shown. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/10/27/2201949/-Alteration-of-Site-Proven-Not-So-for-Pictures-Gaza-Hospital?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/