Israeli forces have released details of an investigation into the murder of 15 Palestinian paramedics and aid workers in Gaza last month. The code of ethics has not been violated, and only one soldier was rejected in an attack that caused anger towards the international community.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Association (PRCS) and the silence-breaking Israeli rights group rejected the Israeli investigation on Sunday.
The PRCS president told Al Arabi Television that Israel’s story of the murder in Rafa was “contradictory.”
“I don’t understand why professional soldiers criminally buried the paramedic remains,” Yunis Al-Kativ said.
Al-Hativ added that evidence, including videos showing the Israeli forces communicating with ambulances before killing them, has proven “the falsehood of the occupation story about limited visibility at the scene.”
“Independent and impartial investigations must be conducted by UN agencies,” he said.
PRCS, whose doctors were killed by Israel in the incident, accused Israel’s report of being “full of lies” on Sunday. “It justifies the murder and if the truth is completely different, it will shift the liability to the local command’s personal error, so it is invalid and unacceptable,” organization spokesman Nevar Farsaf told AFP News.
The PRCS said last week that it confirmed the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that one of the missing doctors was held by Israel.
Emergency: We have been notified by the International Committee of the Red Cross that PRCS Medic Assad Al-Nsasrah is being detained by Israeli occupation authorities. His fate has remained unknown since he was targeted alongside #rafah’s other PRCS medics.
He…pic.twitter.com/l0ooxujs8g– PRCS (@Palestinercs) April 13, 2025
Israeli forces claimed on Sunday that six aid workers killed and buried in shallow mass graves along with ambulances were Hamas “terrorists” without providing evidence.
The probe admitted to detecting a series of “special failures,” including partial and inaccurate reports by commanders of the field invading Rafa in South Gaza.
The deputy commander of the Golani Reconnaissance Battalion will be denied, but the commander of the 14th Brigade will be responsibly.
The investigation also found that despite testimony and evidence, “there are no evidence that either the execution claim or that any of the deceased were detained before or after the shooting.”
The Israeli military initially approached “suspecting” troops, claiming that ambulances and aid workers were not clearly marked as first responders.
A cell phone video, recorded by one of the murdered aid workers, obtained by the New York Times, showed that the crew was clearly marked and looked like Israeli forces, and was killed in an Israeli fire that lasted several minutes.
UN and Palestinian officials later discovered mass tombs and bulldozer ambulances and bodies after Israeli authorities granted access to the area of the almost destroyed city of Rafa, adjacent to Egypt.
“Another day, another cover-up”
The Israeli anti-fortune-telling group, which broke the silence, said the military investigation was “full of contradictions, ambiguous phrases and selective details.”
“Not all lies have a video to publish it, but this report doesn’t even try to get involved in the truth,” the group said. “Another day, another cover-up. A more innocent life was taken without accountability.”
But the far-right voice in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes the military is going too far towards punishing soldiers.
Israeli supranational national security minister Itamar Ben Gwil said the decision to reject the deputy commander was a “significant mistake” that must be reversed.
“Our combat soldiers who are sacrificing their lives in Gaza deserve our full support,” he said.
“The report invites many questions.”
Human rights lawyer Jeffrey Nice told Al Jazeera that the findings raise questions about Israeli military actions in Gaza and the thorough investigation process.
“It’s a pretty amazing document. It’s also a document that invites many questions that I find difficult. [Israeli military] NICE said in a TV interview.
“for example, [there is] The proposition that these six people are Hamas, perhaps the active Hamas members [military] Services, not people who may have been associated with Hamas in some way. No evidence of the documentary has been identified [for that]. ”
Israel has a track record of denying allegations of misconduct and contradicting its own previous statement.
Previous investigations either exonerated the military or held one individual responsible without wider influence.
The UN accused Israeli forces of being responsible for the killing of 15 aid workers, killing UN staff in Bulgarian and injuring six other foreign staff members at Deia Elbara in Gaza last month.
As the number of war deaths continues to rise, organizations are being forced to significantly cut Gaza staff.
