Israeli Writer: 'Army investigates' Meanwhile, live reports are ignored

The army is investigating an allegation that Israeli soldiers killed unarmed men in full view of their families. This is what the army spokesman answered, in response to a question directed to him by the newspaper "Haaretz" regarding the control of an Israeli military force over a residential building in Gaza City, on the evening of Tuesday, December 19.

The first information in this regard arrived on the X platform (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, before midnight, in the form of recorded and desperate audio calls calling for the rescue of the wounded. The next day, more tweets were added, and then the news sites added a few more details, based on reports from family members and the testimony of two women. 

The main report appeared on the website of the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, and includes the names of 11 men who were killed. While other reports indicated 13 names and 15 dead, their ages were approximately thirty years. However, one woman testified that her father was also shot dead, along with her husband and brothers.

After the soldiers shot the men, according to testimonies, the women and children, 27 people in number, were gathered in one room, something was fired in their direction, and then it exploded. The testimonies referred to a “shell,” and the testimony was translated in one report as saying that a hand grenade had been thrown and live bullets had been fired. A number of women, an infant girl, and two six-year-old children were injured, according to reports. In the Al-Awda building that was attacked, the Anan family lives, along with three families who were displaced from their homes, and are related to the family living in the building. These families are Al-Ashi, Al-Ghalayini, and Al-Sharafa.

Many details are missing or not detailed enough, and many questions were not asked, perhaps due to the objective difficulties in the field: the deployment of soldiers in the area, the prohibition of access to the site, and the inability to communicate with witnesses on an ongoing basis. While the United Nations Human Rights Committee issued a warning statement regarding the “disturbing information,” explaining that the killing of the men had been verified, but the circumstances of the incident required verification.

We, who cover life under the occupation regime on “normal days”, usually first verify the report independently, relying on the professional investigations of human rights organizations. But there are several reasons to go beyond this normal procedure, and I will list my initial reasons:

Until we can, if we can, conduct our own examination, a lot of time will pass, and it is reasonable to assume that the number of independent investigations will be small. Meanwhile, Arab television channels continue to show images of bodies distributed among piles of ruins, and bodies thrown next to hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip, and on the sides of the roads. Not mentioning these reports and field scenes, no matter how partial, urgent, and terrifying they may be, represents cooperation with the false advertising slogan launched by the army spokesman, stating that “the army is committed to opening fire orders and international law, and is taking precautions in order to reduce harm to those not involved in the fighting.”

The army spokesman's response that the allegations are under investigation, even though "the details of the incident described are not known to [the army]," differs from the definitive answer sent to Haaretz to another question related to how the army took over Kamal Adwan Hospital. In this case, the army spokesman said last Sunday, “The allegations that the army buried civilians alive in the vicinity of the hospital are dangerous and lack any basis.” This change in wording indicates that there is at least a grain of truth in the reporting of the events of the Al Awda Building.

Even on “normal days,” it is necessary to question the Israeli assumption that if a Palestinian is killed by an Israeli soldier, then he deserves to be killed. But especially these days, as sociologist Yagil Levy explained in an interview with Calcalist, the killing of three of the Israeli kidnapped by Hamas by IDF soldiers “fundamentally indicates that there is no real adherence to the firing rules in Gaza but the army treats Gaza as a sterile zone: it has ordered all residents to flee, and therefore, in the eyes of the army, any human wandering in the area is a legitimate target.” 

In addition, according to Levy, “the fear and exhaustion of the soldiers,” in addition to the tone of the Israeli discourse, which says, “The distinction between those involved and those not involved in the fighting has nothing to do with reality, after the events of October 7, because we consider that the ordinary Gazan bears responsibility.” Collective responsibility for what happened, and even if he does not bear responsibility for the events, we must not think about distinguishing between those involved in the fighting and those who are not, in order to achieve the goal of victory and the elimination of Hamas.”

Despite the order to evacuate the northern Gaza Strip, Khan Yunis, and then the center of the Gaza Strip, a large number of civilians remained in these areas, including women, the elderly, children, and youth.

They simply have no place to go, no shelter to take refuge in, and in the Gaza Strip, in any case, there is no safe place. These people are thirsty, hungry and exhausted, and lack protection and sympathy from the world's heads of state. The bombings have already killed their families and the families of their friends, and among them are determined, frightened and tired Israeli soldiers, with adrenaline, vengeance and anger coursing through their veins.

Meanwhile, journalists and human rights organizations in Gaza are no longer able to investigate the circumstances of the killing of any civilian, due to the large number of deaths, and because of the danger that threatens the life of every human being, everywhere. 

For this reason, ignoring live Palestinian allegations and reports creates a smokescreen that protects the Israeli army and its ambiguous statements, without raising any journalistic question marks.