(TJV 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.”, WIN reported,
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 investigation, led by the IDF’s General Staff Fact-Finding Mechanism under Maj.-Gen. (Res.) Yoav Har-Even, focused on an incident in which troops opened fire on a convoy of vehicles—initially believed to be enemy operatives—in the Tel al-Sultan area of southern Gaza. Fifteen Palestinians were killed in the exchange, six of whom were confirmed to be Hamas terrorists.
The incident began when the Golani Reconnaissance Battalion, preparing to ambush Hamas operatives, mistakenly targeted a vehicle displaying blue and red lights, believing it to be a Hamas police vehicle. Two people were killed in that initial strike, and a third was detained on suspicion of terrorist involvement.
Moments later, troops opened fire on a fire truck under poor visibility conditions, believing it to be a hostile vehicle. The gunfire lasted three minutes before soldiers heard calls to cease fire. An UNRWA vehicle was also fired upon despite being positively identified, resulting in the death of one UNRWA staff member. These actions were determined to be serious errors but not intentional or malicious.
The IDF inquiry confirmed that soldiers did not bind hands or carry out summary executions, directly refuting widely spread claims. While it found that removing bodies from the road was justifiable in a combat setting, the crushing of vehicles during the clearance operation violated military protocol.
As a result of the investigation, the deputy commander of the Golani Brigade’s Reconnaissance Unit was dismissed for giving an “incomplete and inaccurate” account of the events during the initial reporting.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir reviewed and submitted the final findings, which concluded that there was no cover-up attempt and that the troops acted based on the information available in the heat of combat.
