Israel Report: Investigation into deaths at distribution centers in Gaza
According to a newspaper report, Israel's military prosecutor's office is investigating possible war crimes in connection with shots fired at Palestinians near aid centers in the Gaza Strip. As reported by the daily newspaper Haaretz, the investigative unit at the General Staff of the Armed Forces is to examine whether Israeli soldiers who were supposed to secure the distribution centers of the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) violated international humanitarian law.
27.06.2025, 20:30
SDA
According to UN figures, at least 410 Palestinians have been killed in the vicinity of the GHF food distribution centers since the end of May. In almost all cases, Israeli soldiers are said to have shot unprovoked at unarmed crowds who had lined up before the opening of these centers.
The GHF is a foundation supported by Israel and the USA with a murky background. Israel brought it into play after a weeks-long total blockade of the sealed-off Gaza Strip in order to circumvent the distribution of aid by the UN and other organizations. According to Israel, most of the aid that reaches Gaza through these organizations is stolen by the Islamist Hamas. However, there is no evidence of systematic theft of this aid by Hamas.
"Death zone" for those seeking aid
According to the Haaretz report, soldiers and officers involved confirm the unjustified killing of Palestinians near the distribution centers. According to the report, the soldiers are firing at people to keep them away from the centers before they open. "It's a death zone," the paper quoted an army officer who was there himself. "They are treated like an enemy force, there are no crowd control measures, no tear gas, just fire from every conceivable weapon, from machine guns, grenade launchers, mortars."
The GHF centers are operated by private American security companies, while the wider area is to be secured by Israeli units. These are classic combat troops who are not trained in crowd control. "Our way of communicating (with Palestinians in need of help) is to shoot," "Haaretz" quoted the soldier involved.
Government outraged by report
The report made waves in Israel. In a joint statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz described it as a "malicious lie". This would only serve to "defame the most moral army in the world". Earlier accusations that the army would arbitrarily shoot at Palestinians in the vicinity of the GHF centers had been rejected by the army with the argument that in all these cases there had been a threat to the soldiers concerned.
