Israel’s military handling of aid distribution in Gaza has long been condemned internationally. Now, several Israeli soldiers testify about how they are ordered, on a daily basis, to open fire on and kill unarmed and hungry Palestinians attempting to reach food distributions – despite these individuals posing no threat.
– It’s a killing field. Where I was stationed there, between one and five people were killed every day. They’re treated like a hostile force – no crowd-control measures, no tear gas – just live fire with everything imaginable: heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, mortars. Then, once the center opens, the shooting stops, and they know they can approach. Our form of communication is gunfire, a soldier tells the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
– We open fire early in the morning if someone tries to get in line from a few hundred meters away, and sometimes we just charge at them from close range. But there’s no danger to the forces. I’m not aware of a single instance of return fire. There’s no enemy, no weapons, he continues.
The soldier describes the situation as a deadly version of the children’s game “Red Light, Green Light,” and his account of the Israeli military systematically executing hungry civilians is corroborated by other soldiers.
– Firing mortars to keep hungry people away is neither professional nor humane. I know there are Hamas operatives among them, but there are also people who simply want to receive aid, explains another soldier.
– It’s become a place with its own set of rules. The loss of human life means nothing. It’s not even an ‘unfortunate incident’, as the IDF used to say.
Palestinian authorities: 549 killed
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, 549 people have been killed and 4,000 injured since May 27 while trying to receive humanitarian aid at Gaza Humanitarian Foundations (GHF) distribution sites or waiting for UN food convoys. These figures have not been independently verified.
An analysis of reports from Gaza between May 27 and June 24, conducted by The Times of Israel, shows that at least 19 shooting incidents related to aid distribution occurred during this period. In most of these cases, the IDF has admitted to opening fire but described it as “warning shots” against people who came too close to soldiers or tried to enter when the sites were closed.
The repeated mass casualty incidents were recently discussed at a meeting within the Israeli defense establishment, according to Haaretz. Representatives from the Military Advocate General’s Office (MAG) and the IDF Southern Command were among the participants.
According to meeting reports, MAG representatives expressed serious concern about the international outcry over the killing of civilians at aid distribution sites. The Southern Command defended itself by claiming these were isolated incidents and that fire was only opened on Palestinians who posed a threat.
“Dozens killed every day”
But the MAG representatives disagreed, according to a source who attended the meeting.
– The claim that these are isolated cases doesn’t align with incidents in which grenades were dropped from the air and mortars and artillery were fired at civilians, a MAG representative reportedly said.
– This isn’t about a few people being killed – we’re talking about dozens of casualties every day.
In response to the criticism, the Israeli military stated that they don’t deny anything in the reporting. However, they claim that Hamas is trying to sabotage the aid operations.
According to Haaretz, the IDF Military Advocate General has this week formally instructed a special investigation unit to investigate possible war crimes in connection with the Israeli attacks.
