112 Gaza Residents Died While Waiting for Humanitarian Aid, This Is the Explanation of the Israeli Military

IDF spokesman Laksda Daniel Badhi (leftmost) with a number of IDF officials. (Wikimedia Commons/IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

JAKARTA - The Israeli military denied carrying out attacks on residents of the Gaza Strip who were waiting for humanitarian assistance, saying its troops opened fire to disperse crowds of residents when a humanitarian aid convoy passed through the Gaza Strip.

At least 112 people were killed and more than 280 injured in incidents near Gaza City Thursday, Palestinian health officials said. This time the civilian casualties were the largest in recent weeks.

A spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces said in an evening press statement that troops fired warning shots in an attempt to disperse a mob of Palestinians who stormed an aid convoy in northern Gaza, when dozens of people were killed in the crowd.

"The IDF is coordinating a convoy of 38 trucks to provide additional humanitarian aid to the residents of northern Gaza. This humanitarian aid comes from Egypt, passes through security checks at the Kerem Shalom humanitarian crossing in Israel, then enters Gaza, to be distributed by private contractors," explained IDF spokesperson Admiral Young Daniel Hagari, reported by The Times of Israel on March 1.

"As these very important humanitarian supplies were making their way to Gazans in need, thousands of Gazans (stormed) the trucks, some started pushing and trampling other Gazans to death and looting the humanitarian supplies," he continued.

Admiral Hagari said "the unfortunate incident resulted in dozens of Gazans being killed and injured."

"Here are the facts: At 4:40 a.m., the first aid truck in the humanitarian convoy started moving through the humanitarian corridor that we secured. Yes, the IDF secured the humanitarian corridor so that the aid convoy could reach its destination in northern Gaza," he said.

"Our tanks are there to secure humanitarian corridors for aid convoys. Our UAVs are in the air to give our troops a clear picture from above," Hagari continued.

"At 4:45 a.m., the crowd ambushed aid trucks, bringing the convoy to a halt," he said, showing a new video of the incident.

"In this video, the tanks that were there to protect the convoy saw Gazans being trampled and carefully tried to disperse the crowd with several warning shots," he explained.

"When hundreds of people became thousands and things got out of control, the tank commander decided to withdraw to avoid endangering the thousands of Gazans who were there," Hagari said.

"You can see how careful they were in their retreat. They retreated safely, risking their own lives, not shooting at the crowd," he continued.

"The Israel Defense Forces operate in accordance with the rules of engagement and international law. No IDF attacks were carried out against aid convoys," said Admiral Hagari.

"Instead, the IDF is there to carry out humanitarian aid operations, to secure humanitarian corridors, and enable aid convoys to reach their distribution points, so that humanitarian aid can reach Gaza civilians in northern Gaza who are in need," he stressed.

Rear Admiral Hagari said the IDF had been carrying out such operations "for the last four nights without any problems. This is the first night we have experienced this kind of incident."

"This humanitarian aid is coordinated by Israel, for the people of Gaza. We want this aid to reach the people of Gaza. We are working around the clock to make it happen. Israel does not limit the amount of aid that can enter Gaza," he said

"We are working with humanitarian organizations and the international community to help them solve the problem of aid distribution inside Gaza, this is a problem," he stressed.

"We are aware of the suffering of innocent Gazans. This is why we are looking for ways to expand our humanitarian efforts, this is why we carry out humanitarian operations," he continued.

"Our war is against Hamas, not against the people of Gaza," concluded Hagari.