JNS
The soldiers believed they were facing threats to their lives.
Accusations that Israel Defense Forces soldiers executed 15 Palestinians, six of whom were found to be Hamas terrorists, in a March 23 incident in the southern Gaza Strip are "blood libels and false accusations against IDF soldiers," according to a top-level probe published on Sunday.
The internal probe, led by Maj. Gen. (res.) Yoav Har-Even and presented to IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, examined the incident involving IDF fire on a convoy of ambulances in the Khan Yunis area.
The investigation concluded that the killings occurred during an "hostile and dangerous combat zone," and that the soldiers believed they were facing threats to their lives.
"On the night of the incident, March 23, 2025, the troops were conducting a vital mission aimed at targeting terrorists," the conclusions of the probe read in English, noting 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," it states.
The investigation found that two instances of soldiers opening fire were a result of an "operational misunderstanding," with troops believing they were under real threat from Palestinian terrorist forces. A third shooting incident on March 23 violated operational orders, it found.
The probe concluded that commanders had acted correctly when they issued orders to collect and cover the bodies, but said the decision to crush the vehicles was a mistake. "There was no attempt to conceal the event, which was discussed with international organizations and the U.N., including coordination for the removal of bodies," it said.
The probe also noted other operational and reporting failures, including deviations from rules of engagement and a lack of disclosure in initial debriefings. As a result, the deputy commander of the Golani Brigade's Reconnaissance Battalion was removed from his role, and the commander of the 14th Armored Brigade received an official reprimand.
"The IDF regrets the harm caused to uninvolved civilians," it said. "The examination process also serves as part of an ongoing effort to learn from operational incidents and reduce the likelihood of similar occurrences in the future. Existing protocols have been clarified and reinforced, emphasizing the need for heightened caution when operating near rescue forces and medical personnel, even in high-intensity combat zones."
U.N. outrage
United Nations officials expressed outrage in March about the incident in Rafah's Tel al-Sultan neighborhood, in which the bodies of several Palestinian paramedics, as well as one U.N. employee, were allegedly buried by the IDF in a bulldozed grave in the Gaza Strip.
The U.N. claimed IDF soldiers killed 15 aid workers, opened fire at additional vehicles that followed, and buried the slain personnel and their ambulance.
The IDF said the emergency vehicles in question approached its military positions in a suspicious manner and without prior coordination.
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 without informing anyone, saying troops collected the bodies in one spot, covered them with sand, and notified the United Nations.
The military 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., decried the world body’s rush to judgment, saying that nine Hamas members, including Mohammad Amin Ibrahim Shubaki, a terrorist who took part in Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre, were traveling 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 U.N. Security Council meeting. “If we truly want to protect civilians and humanitarian workers, the vetting system of such organizations must improve immediately.”
Dorothy Shea, interim U.S. envoy to the U.N., told the council, “Every death, including those of U.N. and humanitarian workers that many have discussed today, would have been avoided had Hamas accepted the bridge [ceasefire] proposal on the table last month.”
