Israeli forces claimed that 15 emergency workers in Gaza were killed during a military operation after ambulances approached Israeli soldiers without warning. However, the sole survivor of the attack, Munther Abed, disputes this account. Abed says he was driving one of the ambulances when it came under direct fire, and his two colleagues in the front were shot.
The Israeli military said its forces opened fire because the vehicles were moving suspiciously towards soldiers without prior coordination or warning lights on. However, Abed contradicts this claim, saying that all external and internal lights were on until the vehicle was hit by gunfire.
Abed was arrested and interrogated for over 15 hours before being released. He claims to have seen Hamas operatives killed in the incident, but Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar denies any direct threat posed by the emergency workers.
The Israeli military also identified one of the dead as a Hamas terrorist who took part in a previous massacre. However, Abed rejects this claim, saying that all crews are civilian and do not belong to militant groups.
Gaza’s paramedics have called for accountability after an outcry over the deaths of their colleagues. International agencies were unable to access the area until a week after the attack, where they found the bodies buried in shallow graves alongside wrecked vehicles.
The UN has reported that at least 1,060 healthcare workers have been killed since the start of the conflict. Munther Abed vows to expose the crimes committed by Israel against his colleagues, saying he is the only one who can tell their story.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgere1y740o