Baseless blood libel: IDF inquiry refutes accusations of intentional killing in Gaza ambulance shooting

In March, IDF troops opened fire on a convoy of ambulances in the Tel a-Sultan neighborhood of Rafah, southern Gaza, killing 15 Palestinians, six of them terrorists.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

An IDF inquiry into a March 23rd shooting in Rafah that left 15 Palestinians dead refuted accusations that IDF soldiers intentionally killed the Gazans execution-style and described the claims as “baseless blood libels.”

IDF troops opened fire on a convoy of ambulances in the Tel a-Sultan neighborhood of Rafah, southern Gaza.

Of the 15 Palestinians killed, six were Hamas terrorists.

The IDF announced that the deputy commander of the Golani Brigade’s Reconnaissance unit has been dismissed after military investigators determined that he provided a “partial and inaccurate” version of events during the initial investigation.

The General Staff Fact-Finding Mechanism, headed by Maj,-Gen. (Res.) Yoav Har-Even, carried out the investigation. IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir submitted the findings.

According to the inquiry, Golani Reconnaissance Battalion forces, who were preparing to ambush terrorists, opened fire on a vehicle shining blue and red lights, believing it was a Hamas police van. In this incident, two Palestinians were killed, and one was taken for questioning on suspicion of being a Hamas terrorist.

A fire engine arrived at the scene, but due to poor visibility, the troops thought it was an enemy vehicle and began shooting at it for three minutes until they heard cries of “cease fire,” and it was determined that they were not firing at terrorists.

A UNRWA vehicle arrived, and despite the fact it was positively identified by the soldiers, a few fired on it, killing one UNRWA worker.

The inquiry ruled out claims that the IDF troops bound the hands of the people before shooting them or did so intentionally and in an execution-style manner.

To clear the road, soldiers moved the bodies and crushed the vehicles. Although the inquiry found that relocating the bodies was appropriate under the circumstances, crushing the vehicles violated protocol.

The inquiry found that the IDF troops did not attempt to conceal any part of the incident.