Red Cross: Israel killed 8 Palestinian medics in strikes on ambulances
The Red Cross said Israel killed eight Palestinian medics when it struck ambulances in southern Gaza.
United Nations officials said the Red Cross workers' bodies, along with other Palestinian rescue workers, were recovered from a grave in the sand, Reuters reported.
They came under fire more than a week ago.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said it was “appalled” by the killings of the medics and first responders.
“Their bodies were identified today and have been recovered for dignified burial,” the organization said in a statement. “These staff and volunteers were risking their own lives to provide support to others.”
The group went missing on March 23, after Israel resumed its war against Hamas, ending a ceasefire.
The Israeli military said Monday that troops opened fire on a group of vehicles, including ambulances and fire trucks, when the vehicles approached, without headlights or emergency signals, nor prior coordination, Reuters reported.
Israel also said several Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants were killed.
Jonathan Whittall, Gaza head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, described the scene in a post on X. He shared photos of the wreckage and destroyed vehicles.
“They were killed in their uniforms. Driving their clearly marked vehicles. Wearing their gloves. On their way to save lives,” Whittall said. “This should never have happened.”
While Israel did not comment directly on the Red Cross deaths, it told Reuters that it facilitated in an evacuation of the bodies from the area, which it said was an active combat area.