A report by Israeli newspaper Haaretz has shaken the world and evoked international outrage after a number of Israeli soldiers claimed that their commanders told them to shoot Palestinian civilians who were standing unarmed in line for air or food supplies in Gaza.
The witness account report, already confirmed by testimonies and now under investigation within the military, presents a grim image of brutality at humanitarian aid centres run by the embattled Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
‘It’s a killing field’
Soldiers who were deployed in aid distribution areas told Haaretz that they had been instructed to shoot at random into Palestinian crowds, many of whom were elderly people, women, and children seeking basic necessities. “We fired machine guns from tanks and threw grenades,” Haaretz quoted an Israeli soldier, describing an episode when civilians were hit while they were advancing under the veil of early morning mist.
Another described the daily toll in graphic terms. “Between one and five people were killed every day where we were stationed. It’s a killing field.”
These charges were seconded by several soldiers who spoke anonymously to the newspaper, all of whom stated that they were upset by the uncertainty surrounding engagement rules and the deadly force indiscriminately used at aid lines.
549 killed, more than 4,000 wounded
The Gaza Government Media Office said at least 549 Palestinians have been killed and over 4,066 injured, waiting for food assistance at GHF locations since late May. The organisation, formed with support from the Israeli and United States governments, has been criticised for acting independently of the United Nations and not operating according to neutral humanitarian principles.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), an international medical charity, criticised the foundation’s model as a “slaughter masquerading as aid.” The UN Secretary-General António Guterres denounced the circumstance as “inherently unsafe,” claiming that the mechanism for aid is “killing people, not feeding them.”
Method of control, not protection
Al Jazeera spoke to the Haaretz co-author of the report, Nir Hasson, explaining that the shooting wasn’t random or indiscriminate, but was part of an unofficial mechanism to “manage” civilian movement with live fire.
“It’s a practice of crowd control by fire,” Hasson said, pointing out that troops were instructed to shoot to disperse those seeking aid, even when it was evident they were unarmed and posed no danger.
He further stated that although the chain of command is not certain, the orders are probably given by a senior military officer in Gaza.
Military denies misconduct, opens investigation
Backfiring, the Israeli military released a statement denying the allegations. “The assertions of intentional fire at civilians are not accepted in the field,” it claimed, and that “any departure from orders for action or from the law will be investigated thoroughly.
The Military Advocate General has allegedly instructed the army’s Fact-Finding Assessment Mechanism to initiate an investigation of whether the acts reported constitute war crimes. Although Israeli officials did not identify any particular commanders or troops, they did affirm that the incidents reported fall under the jurisdiction of the military and are being officially examined.
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