‘It felt like a computer game’, Israel soldiers describe unrestricted shooting in Gaza
Six Israeli soldiers have described a “shoot first, ask questions later” culture within the Israeli army in Gaza, according to an article published by Israel’s +972 magazine.
“It felt like a computer game,” one soldier identified only as A told the magazine, describing his experience working in an operations room. “Every once in a while, a building comes down… and the feeling is, ‘Wow, how crazy, what fun,'” he said.
Another soldier, identified by the initial M, described shooting as “very unrestricted” even when firing with “machine guns, tanks, and mortars”.
The soldiers interviewed included Yuval Green, a 26-year-old reserve from Jerusalem, who recently signed a letter from 41 reserve soldiers refusing to take part in the Rafah invasion, and five other soldiers who spoke on condition of anonymity. Green was one of two of the soldiers who said unrestricted fire from fellow Israeli soldiers was the greatest danger they felt while in Gaza.
Israeli army vehicles in the southern Gaza Strip on July 3
Israel faces shortage of 120mm tank shells: Report
Israel’s Defense Ministry and the army are concerned about the possibility of ammunition shortages after arms suppliers have stopped responding to their Israeli counterparts and others have refused to supply raw materials used to make ammunition. That’s according to the Israeli newspaper Calcalist.
The report said the army is facing a shortage of 120mm tank shells and some tanks stationed in Gaza were carrying less shells to preserve the supplies in the event of war in the north with Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group.
Footage, testimonies suggest Israeli tanks crushed Palestinians
Exclusive footage obtained by Al Jazeera and witness testimonies indicate that Israeli tanks ran over and crushed members of a Palestinian family in Gaza last month.
In the incident, which took place on June 28, Israeli armoured vehicles reportedly surrounded and shelled the family that was sheltering in a farm northwest of Rafah in south Gaza. Five people were unable to leave while the rest managed to escape.
When Israeli forces withdrew from the area, the family returned and found the remains of their loved ones who appeared to have been tortured and crushed by tanks.
Israeli gov’t to provide new documents on October 7 failures
The Israeli government will provide the country’s State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman with new documents related to security failures that led to the October 7 attack by Hamas, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority has said.
The decision comes after Englman criticised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for failing to cooperate with his office’s investigation, the report said. Among the material requested, the report states, were documents related to the transfer of funds from Israel to Hamas.
Israel’s intelligence establishment has come under enormous scrutiny for security failures on October 7 when Hamas fighters launched an unprecedented assault on southern Israel killing more than 1,130 people, mostly civilians, and taking about 240 captives.
The investigation is seeking to find out why Israel’s military was so unprepared for an attack despite a reported warning a year before and why the military had diverted resources away from monitoring Gaza.
