close
close
hsuses

Civilian casualties in Gaza and jeep incident require investigation

Theo

The Israeli military apparently admitted two serious human rights violations over the weekend.

In one case, Israeli forces hunting terrorists may have accidentally killed Palestinian civilians in the southern Gaza coastal region of al-Muwasi. In the other, a small group of Israeli soldiers illegally tied a Palestinian to the hood of a military jeep.

In the first case, Hamas and the Red Cross claim that between 22 and 25 Palestinians were killed and between 45 and 50 injured in an Israeli attack, without distinguishing between civilians and fighters. The Red Cross further claimed that the majority of the victims were women or children.

An IDF statement said there were no deliberate attacks on civilians in the al-Muwasi security zone.

However, the vague wording left open the possibility that this could have been an erroneous attack.

IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip. June 18, 2024. (Source: IDF SPEAKERS UNIT)

Sources in the Israeli army did not deny that a mistake might have been made, but stressed that the problem would likely arise within a few days due to the high global sensitivity of the situation.

Clarifications on military actions

There have also been cases where the Israeli forces have simply stated that they knew they would not have attacked in an area where a controversial incident had occurred.

In the second incident, a small group of IDF forces strapped a wounded Palestinian to the hood of a military jeep during a raid in the West Bank city of Jenin on Saturday.

A video circulating on social media and confirmed by Reuters shows a Palestinian resident of Jenin, Mujahed Azmi, driving past two ambulances in a jeep.

A statement from the Israeli military said Israeli forces were shot at and there was an exchange of fire in which a suspect was injured and arrested.

The soldiers then violated military protocol, the statement said. “The suspect was arrested by the armed forces while he was tied to a vehicle,” it said.

The military said that the “behavior of the forces in the video of the incident does not correspond to the values” of the Israeli army and that the incident would be investigated and dealt with.

The person was transferred to a medical center for further treatment, the military said.

IDF sources said the JerusalemPost that the soldiers tried to hand the Palestinian over to the Red Cross, but the Red Cross ambulance had no room.

Since the soldiers also did not have an extra seat for a wounded prisoner, they thought that taking him to the hospital, even if he was tied to the hood of the car, would be better than other options.

Reuters was able to confirm and verify the location using footage shared on social media, which shows a vehicle carrying a person tied down on a vehicle in Jenin. An eyewitness interviewed by Reuters confirmed the date.

According to Azmi’s family, there was a raid in which he was injured. When Emily called for an ambulance, the army took Mujahed, strapped him to the hood of the car and drove away.

In none of the cases does there appear to have been any unlawful intent from the outset.

Violence in the West Bank had already increased before the Gaza war between Israel and Hamas and has since escalated further with frequent army raids against terrorists, violent counterattacks by Jewish settlers in Palestinian villages and deadly Palestinian terrorist attacks.



Related Posts