A Palestinian paramedic says he witnessed Israeli soldiers open fire on a convoy of emergency vehicles in southern Gaza last month, in an attack that killed 15 of his colleagues and left one still missing. His account supports accusations by the Red Crescent and United Nations that Israeli forces targeted aid workers.
Munther Abed, a volunteer with the Palestinian Red Crescent, said he was detained by Israeli troops near Rafah on March 23 while responding to an emergency call after an air strike. He recounted seeing Civil Emergency and Red Crescent vehicles arriving at the scene before coming under heavy fire.
“I saw the soldiers shooting at the ambulances. They asked me to duck, and I felt the bullets were hitting me,” Abed told Reuters by phone from his home in Khan Younis.
The Israeli military said it is investigating the incident, claiming that troops opened fire on unmarked vehicles approaching at night without prior coordination. The military said militants from Hamas and Islamic Jihad were using vehicles bearing Red Crescent insignia, and some were killed in the strike.
Abed said the full extent of the attack became clear only at dawn. “I saw the doors of the ambulances wide open, blood everywhere. Later, I saw a bulldozer dig four holes in the sand, crush the wrecked vehicles, and bury them.”
He was held by Israeli forces for around 15 hours, during which he said he was beaten and interrogated about the Hamas-led October 7 attack. He also saw the missing aid worker being detained.
The Red Crescent has confirmed Abed’s account and described him as the sole survivor of the strike. “He was there as part of the mission. His two colleagues were killed, and another remains unaccounted for,” said spokesperson Nebal Farsakh.
On Saturday, the Red Crescent released footage from a paramedic’s phone, recovered from the mass grave. The video shows a convoy of ambulances and a fire truck with lights flashing approaching a vehicle off the road. As they stop, gunfire erupts.
Reuters verified the location of the video as near Tal al-Sultan, west of Rafah.
In response, the Israeli military said the March 23 event is under “thorough examination,” including video evidence.
The incident adds to mounting scrutiny of Israeli conduct in Gaza, where aid workers, civilians, and infrastructure have been repeatedly struck amid the ongoing war.
