The IDF said that although its troops fired warning shots at suspects approaching them, they did not aim at the 12,000 civilians crowding around the humanitarian aid convoy.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
An IDF probe into the humanitarian aid convoy incident a month ago which, according to Palestinian sources, killed 100 civilians, found that the IDF was not responsible for the deaths.
The IDF said that although its troops fired at suspects approaching them, they did not shoot at the 12,000 civilians crowding around the humanitarian aid convoy.
Palestinian media claimed that the IDF opened fire directly on the civilians seeking humanitarian aid and killed at least 100 people.
According to the IDF probe into the matter, as thousands of Palestinians crowded the aid trucks, there was looting, chaos erupted and many were trampled or run over by vehicles, causing injuries and deaths.
Many global media outlets have taken the Palestinian account at face value and rushed to condemn Israel for intentionally harming civilians and preventing them from receiving humanitarian aid.
Although the Palestinian sources said they heard gunshots, the IDF has confirmed they fired warning shots at those who were rushing towards them, not at the civilians seeking aid.
The Commanding Officer of the Southern Command, MG Yaron Finkelman, presented the findings to the Chief of the General Staff, LTG Herzi Halevi on Tuesday.
Following the IDF probe, there will be further investigation by the Fact-Finding and Assessment Mechanism (FFAM).
The FFAM is expected to independently come to conclusions on the incident.
Although the Biden Administration has grown increasingly critical of Israel’s military operations and has highlighted the plight of Gazan civilians, the US Deputy Ambassador to the UN vetoed a motion holding Israel responsible for Palestinian deaths during the humanitarian convoy incident.
US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood vetoed the motion and said, “The problem is that we don’t have all the facts here.”
Wood added that the declaration should be worded using “the necessary due diligence with regards to culpability.”
France and Germany agreed that there should be an independent inquiry before rushing to blame Israel for the deaths.
Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said Friday. “We will ask for explanations, and there will have to be an independent probe to determine what happened.”
The German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said the UN Security Council “must fully investigate how the mass panic and shooting could have happened.”