The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has called for an international inquiry into the killing of 15 emergency workers in southern Gaza by Israeli forces – saying the attack constitutes a “full-fledged war crime”.
The IDF claimed it mistakenly identified a convoy of aid workers as a threat after a video, recovered from the phone of one victim, showed the ambulances clearly marked with flashing red lights – disputing the IDF’s claim that the vehicles had no emergency signals. The bodies of the 15 aid workers, including eight medics from PRCS, were found in a mass grave following the attack, according to Jonathan Whittall, head of the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Israeli forces said the vehicles were targeted after they were deemed suspicious for not having headlights or emergency signals. The video footage, obtained by Sky News, showed the ambulances were clearly identifiable.
According to the IDF, the attack happened when the ambulances arrived in the Tel Sultan neighbourhood in Rafah shortly after a Hamas police vehicle had passed through. The IDF said their troops, watching from an aircraft, mistakenly fired on the convoy, believing it posed a threat but later revised their original statement – saying claims that the ambulances had no lights on was incorrect. The IDF said it was now re-investigating the incident.
President of the PRCS, Dr Younis Al Khatib, has called the deaths “atrocious” and demanded an independent investigation into the killings. “It’s not enough to comfort us with condolences and nice words of investigation and accountability. There has to be action taken,” he said, urging that those responsible be held accountable under international humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention.
“Why were they killed? Why did you destroy the ambulances after killing them? Why did you try to dig deep and hide the ambulances? They have to answer for that,” Dr Al Khatib added. IDF spokesman David Mencer blamed Hamas for hiding among civilians and using them as human shields, but offered no evidence to support this claim.
Footage from the scene saw the medics, including one who filmed his final moments, heard saying: “Forgive me, mother. I just wanted to help people. I wanted to save lives.” The paramedic was later found with a bullet wound to his head.
The IDF’s initial report claimed that eight of the 15 killed were Hamas members, but later revised the number down to six. No evidence has been provided to substantiate the claims that any of the deceased were linked to Hamas.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has condemned the killings. Dylan Winder, permanent observer to the United Nations and director of global humanitarian diplomacy at the IFRC, said: “They were humanitarians. They wore emblems that should have been protected. Their ambulances were clearly marked, and they should have returned to their families. They did not.”
The PRCS has insisted that only an independent, thorough investigation will ensure justice for the victims of this “atrocious crime”.
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