The Israeli military has revised its account of the killing of 15 Palestinian medics in the Gaza Strip last month, following the emergence of phone footage that contradicts their initial statements. Initially, the military claimed that the vehicles did not have emergency signals on when they opened fire, citing that the vehicles were advancing suspiciously without lights or signals. However, an Israeli military official has since stated that this account was “mistaken.”

The footage, recovered from the phone of one of the deceased, Rifat Radwan, shows several clearly marked emergency vehicles with headlights and emergency lights as they travel at night. The video captures the moment when gunfire erupts, resulting in the deaths of the medics.

The incident, which occurred on 23 March, has raised significant international concern, with the UN stating that Israeli forces shot the men “one by one” and subsequently buried them in a mass grave. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have stated that the incident is still under investigation and that all claims, including the footage, will be thoroughly examined.

According to the UN’s humanitarian affairs office (Ocha), the medics and rescue workers were on a mission to rescue colleagues who had been shot earlier in the day when their vehicles came under heavy Israeli fire in Rafah’s Tel al-Sultan district. A Red Crescent official in Gaza revealed that there is evidence suggesting at least one person was detained and killed, as the body of one of the deceased was found with his hands tied. The shootings took place during the renewed Israeli military operation in the area following the breakdown of a two-month ceasefire with Hamas.

A survivor of the incident, Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic Munther Abed, recounted how he was detained by Israeli troops after their ambulance came under intense fire while responding to an airstrike. Abed witnessed the death of his colleagues and was later released after several hours of detention.

Both the UN and the Palestinian Red Crescent have called for an independent inquiry into the killings. Israeli media has reported that troops identified at least six of the 15 medics as members of militant groups, including a Hamas figure named Mohammed Amin Shobaki. However, none of the deceased medics have this name, and there is no evidence to support these claims.

A UN official in Gaza dismissed the allegations that the deceased medics were Hamas militants, stating that the medics had worked with the UN previously in evacuating patients. The official also pointed out that the medics were buried in their uniforms, ready to save lives, undermining the suggestion that they were militants.

The UN and the Palestinian Red Crescent have demanded transparency and accountability regarding the incident, with the Israeli military’s initial statements now under scrutiny due to the contradictory evidence presented by the footage.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/06/israeli-military-admits-initial-account-of-palestinian-medics-killing-was-mistaken