On Thursday 29 February in Gaza, dozens of Gazans were killed in two separate incidents, both involving humanitarian supplies. An article about the tragedy is here.
Zionist Federation of Australia CEO Alon Cassuto warned of the danger of misinformation. “The death of any innocent is absolutely tragic, and we mourn all those who have died in these incidents”, he said. “But a reflexive decision to blame Israel for their deaths will only cause further division here in Australia. We must focus on the truth.”
Mr Cassuto continued, “According to the IDF, there were two incidents in northern Gaza. In the first, thousands of Palestinians surrounded aid trucks, and dozens of people were killed by being trampled or run over. The IDF was not involved.”
“In a second incident, a group stormed IDF troops who were delivering aid. Given the frequent Hamas tactics of dressing as civilians, the IDF fired warning shots, and then deadly fire once IDF troops were in fear of their lives. This is entirely within the norms and parameters of international humanitarian law.”
Background
According to media reports, some of the trucks in the first incident pushed past the crowd. Later, armed gunmen—likely Hamas—stopped the convoy and looted the trucks. Much of the aid that has entered Gaza has been stolen by Hamas in this fashion.
