Video Casts Doubt on Israeli Account of Gaza Medic Killings

• Apr 05, 2025

A newly released video appears to challenge Israel's explanation for the deadly shooting of rescue workers in Gaza on March 23. At least 15 people, including paramedics and civil defence workers, were killed when ambulances and a fire truck came under fire during a nighttime mission.

The video, shared by the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), was retrieved from the mobile phone of a paramedic who died in the attack. It shows a convoy of marked emergency vehicles moving in the dark with headlights and emergency lights clearly flashing before being fired upon. This directly contradicts initial claims by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which denied the presence of any visible emergency lights on the vehicles.

In response to the footage, the IDF told the BBC that all claims, including the newly released video, would be “thoroughly and deeply examined” to determine what happened.

A surviving paramedic, Munther Abed, had earlier told the BBC that their ambulances were clearly marked and illuminated, both inside and out. “Everything tells you it's an ambulance vehicle that belongs to the Palestinian Red Crescent. All lights were on until the vehicle came under direct fire,” he said.

The video, which was also presented to the UN Security Council, shows the vehicles stopping at the roadside with lights still flashing. At least two workers wearing reflective gear are seen stepping out before gunfire erupts. The person filming, believed to be one of the victims, can be heard praying as the shooting continues and the windshield shatters. His body, along with the phone containing the footage, was later found buried in a shallow grave.

The bodies of eight paramedics, six Gaza Civil Defence workers, and one UN staff member were recovered days later, after international organisations negotiated access to the site. One paramedic remains missing.

Israel has claimed that militants from Hamas and Islamic Jihad were among the dead, but has not provided evidence or clarified the nature of the threat. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar defended the military, stating that “the IDF did not randomly attack an ambulance.”

PRCS President Dr Younis Al-Khatib called for an “independent and thorough investigation,” describing the killings as an “atrocious crime.” Referring to the recording, he added: “I heard the voice of one of those team members who was killed. His last words before being shot... ‘Forgive me mum, I just wanted to help people. I wanted to save lives.’ It’s heartbreaking.”