Israel
IDF admits errors over ambulance shootings, but decries ‘blood libel’
Two officers were reprimanded over the incident after
April 20, 2025 20:36
Two officers were reprimanded over the incident after
April 20, 2025 20:36Two senior soldiers from the IDF’s Golani Brigade have been punished for errors committed when the IDF opened fire on a convoy of ambulances in the Khan Yunis area.
The deputy commander of the Golani Brigade’s Reconnaissance Battalion was removed from his role, and the commander of the 14th Armoured Brigade received an official reprimand.The IDF’s internal report, published today, cited operational and reporting failures, deviations from rules of engagement and a lack of disclosure in initial debriefings.
The report,said that accusations that IDF soldiers executed 15 Palestinians, six of whom were found to be Hamas terrorists were “blood libels and false accusations.” However it also said: “The IDF regrets the harm caused to uninvolved civilians.”
The internal report examined the incident which took place on March 23 2025. It concluded that the killings occurred during an “hostile and dangerous combat zone,” and that the soldiers believed they were facing threats to their lives.
The investigation found that: “throughout the operation, vehicles and ambulances moved along the route without obstruction, since the forces did not perceive any threat posed by them. The forces also apprehended two pedestrians who raised suspicion, and released them subsequently.
“This indicates that the troops did not engage in indiscriminate fire but remained alert to respond to real threats identified by them.”
The investigation found that the soldiers opened fire twice because they believed they were under threat, calling it an “operational misunderstanding”. A third incident violated operational orders, it found.
The investigation concluded that the decision to crush the ambulances was a mistake.
“There was no attempt to conceal the event, which was discussed with international organisations and the UN, including coordination for the removal of bodies,” it said.
The internal investigators said the IDF would learn from the incident. “Existing protocols have been clarified and reinforced, emphasising the need for heightened caution when operating near rescue forces and medical personnel, even in high-intensity combat zones.”
United Nations officials had expressed outrage in March about the incident in which the bodies of several Palestinian paramedics, as well as one UN employee, were buried by the IDF.
An initial IDF probe published on April 5 found that the soldiers were surprised by the convoy stopping next to an abandoned Hamas vehicle, and by several suspects jumping out of the ambulance and running.
The IDF rejected claims that it buried the bodies in an unmarked mass grave, saying troops collected the bodies in one spot, covered them with sand, and notified the United Nations.
It explained that burying bodies in this way was an approved and common practice during the past 18 months of warfare in the Gaza Strip to prevent wild dogs and other animals from eating the corpses.
On April 4, Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the U.N., said that nine Hamas members, including Mohammad Amin Ibrahim Shubaki, a terrorist who took part in the OCtober 7 massacre were 2023, massacre, were travelling in the ambulances.
“How did nine Hamas terrorists find themselves traveling inside Red Crescent ambulances? The presence of those terrorists puts everyone’s lives at risk,” Danon said at the UN Security Council meeting. “If we truly want to protect civilians and humanitarian workers, the vetting system of such organisations must improve immediately.”