3 yıl önce

NYT investigation finds Israel strikes in Gaza’s Rimal possible ‘war crime’

Investigation determines series of Israeli air strikes that left more than 40 people dead in besieged Gaza’s neighbourhood were conducted “without warning” and “with limited intelligence about what they were attacking”.

AFP

A ball of fire erupts from a building in Gaza City's Rimal residential district during massive Israeli bombardment on the enclave on May 16, 2021.

A series of Israeli air strikes that left dozens of people dead in a Gaza neighbourhood were conducted "without warning" and "with limited intelligence about what they were attacking," an investigation has determined.

The New York Times video probe, which relies in part on Anadolu Agency footage, examines Israeli air strikes that targeted the upscale Rimal neighbourhood using some of the Israeli military's largest bombs.

The strikes flattened three apartment buildings in the early morning hours of May 16, resulting in 44 deaths in what marked the single deadliest incident of Israel's 11-day air campaign.

Israel says the strikes targeted an underground Hamas command centre, and while "there is no evidence Israel struck or directly targeted the apartment buildings," experts told the US newspaper the types of strikes that were documented "can easily lead to catastrophe and could be a war crime."

The Israeli military told the Times that while they targeted the Hamas command centre, they did not know its exact location, nor its size.

It did not provide evidence of the alleged command centre, and Hamas denied it exists.

International law

Bomb fragments presented to the newspaper by Gaza police indicate the bombs dropped on al Wahda street in Rimal where the apartments were located were American-made 2,000-pound GBU-31 Mark 84 bombs outfitted with GPS equipment that allows for precision targeting.

At least four were likely dropped by the Israeli Air Force "within feet" of the apartment buildings, the investigation found.

The Israeli military maintains that all of the bombs hit their designated targets but that does not mean the strikes were in compliance with international law.

Israel's 11-day assault killed more than 250 Palestinians, including 66 children.

Thirteen people were killed in Israel due to Palestinian rocket fire, including two children.