The Civil Protection of Gaza managed by Hamas accused the Israeli army (IDF) of having made “summary executions” during the shooting of 23 March last in which 15 Palestinian doctors died in the strip.
The position of the Gaza authorities is clearly contrasting with the conclusions of the Idf report on the killings published yesterday.
“The video shot by one of the paramedics shows that the narrative of the Israeli employment is false and shows that summary executions were carried out,” an official of the Civil Protection, Mohammed al-Moughair, told the FP.
The Palestinian official also accused Israel of trying to “circumvent” his obligations imposed by international law. On March 23, a few days after the resumption of the offensive in the Gaza strip, the IDF troops opened fire on the teams of the Civil Protection and the Red Crescent in Rafah, in the south of the Palestinian territory.
Israel says that six members of Hamas were aboard the affected ambulances. However, an internal military investigation, whose results were made public yesterday by the Israeli army, found a “bad professional conduct”, “disobedience” and “misunderstandings” among the Israeli soldiers in relation to the shooting.
In addition, the army announced the imminent dismissal of an officer who commanded the troops on the field that day and “regretted” for collateral victims. “It was a mistake, but we don’t think it is a mistake that happens every day,” said the general (reserve) Yoav Har-Even, head of the investigation, during a press conference.
The victims were eight members of the red crescent, six members of the Civil Protection of Gaza and a member of UNRWA, the United Nations Agency for Palestinian refugees. The bodies were found several days after the shooting, buried in the sand, in what the United Nations Office for humanitarian affairs (OCHA) described as a “common pit”. The Palestinian red crescent has branded the relationship of the Israeli army as “full of lies”.