A Palestinian paramedic who was current at an incident during which 15 of his colleagues have been killed in southern Gaza final month mentioned he noticed Israeli troops firing at emergency autos that he later noticed stained with blood.
After a number of days of uncertainty in regards to the whereabouts of the paramedics, Red Crescent and U.N. officers discovered the our bodies of the 15 emergency and assist employees buried in a mass grave in southern Gaza, accusing Israeli forces of killing them. Another employee remains to be lacking.
Munther Abed, a volunteer for the Palestinian Red Crescent, mentioned he was responding to a name with two colleagues close to Rafah within the south of the Gaza Strip on March 23 when he was detained by the Israeli troopers shortly earlier than they opened fireplace on different emergency autos.
He mentioned he had not been in a position to see precisely what occurred when the troopers opened fireplace. But his account corresponds with assertions by officers from the Palestinian Red Crescent and the United Nations that the emergency employees from the Red Cross, Red Crescent, U.N. and Palestinian Civil Emergency service have been focused by Israeli troops.
The Palestinian Red Crescent describes Abed as “the lone survivor” of the incident, with the destiny of the lacking paramedic nonetheless unclear.
Abed mentioned he and colleagues had obtained a name to exit to assist wounded folks at round daybreak following an air strike within the Al-Hashasheen space in Rafah, near the border with Egypt.
“We moved right away, it was me and two other colleagues. As soon as we arrived there, we came under fire and they detained us,” he advised Reuters by cellphone from his home in Khan Younis, referring to capturing by Israeli troopers.
After he was detained, he mentioned he overlooked his two colleagues.
As he was standing close to the troopers, he mentioned he noticed different emergency autos approaching the Israeli troopers’ place.
“I could see the vehicle of the Civil Emergency. The soldiers began shooting at the vehicles, they fired heavily,” he mentioned. “It was dark and I couldn’t see what happened to the people there, but they (the soldiers) fired heavily. They asked me to duck down and they were firing heavily. I felt as if the bullets were hitting me personally.”
On Saturday, the Red Crescent issued a video obtained from the cellphone of a paramedic discovered buried within the mass grave.
Filmed from inside a transferring automobile, it seems to indicate a clearly marked convoy of ambulances and a fireplace truck driving at daybreak with their crimson lights flashing. After they cease by a automobile that had veered off the street, two rescue employees and one other man will be seen earlier than a volley of gunshots is heard.
Reuters was in a position to confirm the placement of the video close to the Tal al-Sultan space west of Rafah metropolis in Rafah governate.
The Israeli army mentioned in response to a request for remark in regards to the video that the occasion on March 23, 2025, was beneath thorough examination.
“All claims, including the documentation circulating about the incident, will be thoroughly and deeply examined to understand the sequence of events and the handling of the situation,” it mentioned.
‘BLOOD ON THE VEHICLES’
It was solely after dawn that Abed, who remained held on the location the place he was initially detained, was in a position to get a clearer image of what had occurred.
“With the first light of the day, things become clearer, I saw the vehicles of the Civil Emergency and the Red Crescent, the doors of all the vehicles were open and there was blood on the vehicles,” he mentioned.
He mentioned he noticed a bulldozer dig 4 holes within the sandy floor earlier than crushing the wrecked autos and burying them.
“At that time I had no clue about the fate of my colleagues,” he mentioned.
Abed mentioned he was held in detention by Israeli forces for about 15 hours throughout which period he was interrogated and crushed. He mentioned he noticed the help employee who remains to be lacking, detained by Israeli troopers.
“They asked me where I had been on October 7, they were saying Palestinians are terrorists, and that we are all terrorists. They asked many personal questions too about me and my family,” he mentioned. “I felt I was about to die.”
Eventually he mentioned the troopers made some checks on him earlier than they determined to launch him.
Nebal Farsakh, spokesperson of the Palestinian Red Crescent confirmed that Abed was working for the group as a volunteer and was in Rafah that day with the mission.
“He is the lone survivor, the two colleagues who were with him were killed. There is another colleague who is still missing,” Farsakh advised Reuters.
“He had no clue at that moment whether his colleagues were martyred or were wounded and saved.”
Source: www.anews.com.tr