05.04.2025 17:30
A video has emerged showing the moment when Israel killed 15 health and civil defense workers who were on their way to assist the injured in Gaza. In the footage, which contradicts the claims of the murderous Israeli regime that continues its policy of denial, the health worker who recorded the video can be heard saying the shahada and, "Forgive me, mother. This is the path I have chosen; to help people."
On March 23, images emerged showing the Israeli army directly targeting an ambulance carrying 15 health and civil defense workers who were going to help those injured in the attack on Tel es-Sultan in the southern Gaza Strip.
HEALTH WORKER'S CELL PHONE FOUND IN MASS GRAVE The New York Times reported that the footage was obtained from the cell phone of a health worker whose lifeless body was found in a mass grave where Israeli soldiers buried the 15 health and civil defense workers.
DIRECT FIRE OPENED ON HEALTH AND CIVIL DEFENSE WORKERS Contrary to Israel's claims, the video clearly shows that the vehicles used by health workers were ambulances. It shows that soldiers opened fire on health and civil defense teams as soon as they arrived in the area to help those injured in the Israeli attack. In a video taken from the front of one of the vehicles carrying health and civil defense teams heading to the scene, it can be seen that the vehicles in the convoy bore clear signs indicating they were an ambulance and a fire truck. The footage shows a convoy consisting of ambulances and a fire truck with emergency lights and sirens activated, stopped in front of a vehicle believed to be an ambulance previously sent to assist the injured. The direct fire opened on the first aid team, clearly identifiable by their uniforms, lasted for about five minutes, as reflected in the footage.
"FORGIVE ME, MOM. THIS IS THE PATH I CHOSE" The report noted that in the unpublished part of the footage, the health worker who filmed it was heard reciting the Shahada and realizing he was going to die, saying, "Forgive me, mom. This is the path I chose; to help people." For a while, the moans of health workers and the soldiers speaking in a harsh tone in Hebrew, though not understandable, were heard in the background. Nebal Farsakh, spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, stated in an interview with the press that the lifeless body of the health worker who filmed the video was retrieved from the mass grave with a bullet wound to the head.
EXHUMED FROM THE MASS GRAVE ON EID Jonathan Whittall, a senior humanitarian officer at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), made statements on social media regarding the mass grave where 15 health and civil defense workers were buried. Whittall stated, "Health and civil defense workers were shot one by one. Their bodies were collected and buried in this mass grave. We are retrieving them in their uniforms, with gloves. They were here to save lives. Instead, they were buried in a mass grave."
On March 30, the first day of Ramadan, the lifeless bodies of 8 Palestinian Red Crescent, 6 Palestinian Civil Defense Organization, and 1 United Nations personnel were exhumed by Israeli soldiers from where they had been buried.
FOOTAGE DISPROVES ISRAEL'S CLAIMS As Israel continues to systematically target health and civil defense personnel in its attacks on the Gaza Strip since October 7, it has drawn significant international backlash, while the Tel Aviv administration maintains its denial policy regarding these attacks. Defense Minister Gideon Saar claimed that Israeli soldiers "did not target a random ambulance," asserting that "the vehicle was approaching suspiciously towards the soldiers." In a statement from the Israeli Army Spokesperson earlier this week, it was claimed that contrary to what the footage revealed, it was determined that the vehicles were "advancing suspiciously without their lights on or emergency signals," which led to the soldiers opening fire.
Israeli Defense Minister Gideon Saar ISRAELI ARMY KILLING HEALTH AND CIVIL DEFENSE WORKERS IN RAFAH In a statement from the Palestinian Red Crescent on March 23, it was reported that 4 ambulances and their teams sent to rescue those injured in the attack in Rafah were surrounded by the Israeli army, and some health workers were injured in the attack. The Civil Defense Unit in Gaza also lost contact with the teams that were sent to rescue health workers within the Palestinian Red Crescent on the same day. A statement from the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza indicated that some of the individuals targeted in Rafah, whose lifeless bodies were reached, were found with their hands tied, shot in the head and chest, and buried in a deep pit.