JERUSALEM: Israel’s military on Saturday promised a full and factual investigation into the death of a Palestinian man queuing for aid in Gaza this week, which has drawn condemnation and calls for an international inquiry.
Gaza health officials announced that 118 people were killed in Thursday’s incident, which they blamed on Israeli arson and called it genocide.
Israel disputes these figures, saying most of the victims were trampled or trampled. Israeli officials also said the army then opened fire on crowds that felt threatened “in a limited response”.
“We are investigating this incident, we have all the documentation that we need in order to carry out an exhaustive, truthful investigation into the facts of this incident and we will present our findings,” spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told media in capital Tel Aviv.
“It was a humanitarian operation we were running and the claim that we deliberately attacked the convoy and deliberately harmed people is completely baseless,” Hagari added. He further said that it was the fourth such operation in that area.
Accounts of what happened vary widely, but the incident remains a mystery.
Many countries have called for a ceasefire amid the humanitarian disaster in Gaza, but US President Joe Biden said Thursday’s incident would complicate talks seeking a ceasefire and a deal that would include the release of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas.
