- Israeli airstrike targets civilians
- Victims unrelated to armed groups
- Alleged military operation justification
As reported by witnesses in the occupied West Bank, Israel is accused of targeting a group of Palestinian civilians who had no ties to armed groups and posed no threat to Israeli forces.
Early on January 7, an Israeli airstrike killed seven men, four of whom were brothers, as they gathered around a fire along the roadside in al-Shuhada village, located six miles (10 kilometres) from the city of Jenin.
Each individual presented compelling evidence that disproved the men’s affiliation with armed militant organisations and indicated the absence of hostilities between Israeli forces and the area during that period.
The initial paramedic to appear that morning, Khalid al-Ahmad, is certain the men committed no wrongdoing.
He stated that one of them was dressed in footwear and pyjamas. Do you not believe that an individual desiring to resist the Israeli occupation would wear at least appropriate footwear?
The assault has been associated by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) with a military operation that occurred in a Jenin refugee camp several hours prior, during which a female soldier was fatally wounded.
The IDF referred us to a statement it issued at the time, which stated that “an aircraft struck a terrorist squad that was hurling explosives at the operating forces in the area during the operation.”
Absence of Confrontation Evidence
At the time of the strike, there is no discernible evidence of confrontations with Palestinians in al-Shuhada, as captured on camera by the IDF and an adjacent CCTV system.
The four siblings Darweesh (Alaa, Hazza, Ahmad, and Rami) ranged from 22 to 29 years. They were Palestinian emigrants who had returned with their mother and five siblings from Jordan a few years prior.
Their Israeli permits granted them daily access to Israel for agricultural labour. Obtaining these permits is frequently challenging, and they are swiftly revoked from individuals whom Israel deems to be a security concern or associated with such individuals.
The three males who perished alongside them belonged to their extended family.
Two brothers were granted permits in September 2023, which remain valid for several months. Palestinian labourers have been prohibited from accessing the borders with Israel ever since the Hamas attacks in October.
Khalid al-Ahmad, the paramedic, stated that after twenty years of service in Jenin, he had become accustomed to conducting routine safety checks at trauma sites to detect weapons or explosives.
He stated, “I would inform you if there were weapons present.” These were, in all honesty, civilians. No items associated with the resistance were present, including ammunition and weapons. Moreover, an Israeli presence was non-existent.
Armed Palestinian groups, which are typically fast to claim the lives of their members killed by Israeli forces, have not stated these seven individuals, designating none of them as “martyrs” for their cause.
Their remains were draped in the logo of various Palestinian organisations, including Hamas, during their funeral. Even if the deceased does not personally support a particular movement, their remains are frequently entombed in flags of affinity with which their family and friends show solidarity.
Denial of Militant Ties
The men had no ties to militant organisations, according to neighbours and relatives, as well as the director of the primary hospital in Jenin, Wissam Bakr, to whom the bodies were transported that morning.
“They are not armed; they are not fighters,” according to him. “It is typically evident from the crowd whether or not he is a member of a militant organisation.” What are these seven? Undoubtedly, each individual in question is a civilian.”
The mother of the deceased, Ibtesam Asous, discovered her sons’ corpses at the hospital.
“Everyone had vanished,” she declared. “While I anticipated one of them to be martyred, I did not anticipate all four of them to perish.” “I was astounded to discover that each of them had been murdered.”
We requested an explanation from the Israeli army regarding the rationale behind the targeting of this particular group of individuals.
A representative responded that the “terrorists responsible for the death of an Israeli citizen” were being pursued by soldiers and that the airstrike was directed at “a terrorist squad that fired explosives at the operating forces in the area, endangering them.”
Shai Germai, a border policewoman of 19 years of age, was fatally wounded hours before the airstrike in al-Shuhada when an explosive device detonated in her vehicle amidst fighting with Palestinian militants in Jenin Camp.
The army convoy subsequently retreated from Jenin via al-Shuhada. In this location, the Darweesh siblings and three distant relatives had gathered near an all-night coffee shop frequented by agricultural labourers and patrons of the nearby dawn vegetable market.
IDF-provided night-vision drone footage of vehicles traversing a road illuminated by small flashes followed by a detonation reveals a heat pattern consistent with a petrol bomb. There is neither a time stamp nor a date mark on the video.
The army also supplied comparable video footage of its airstrike on the site; however, the overlap and editing of the two segments render it unfeasible to ascertain the passage of time between them.
We requested that the IDF precise the times of both occurrences. It responded that it had no further comments or information to offer.
The timing is critical due to the conditions that international law requires to justify using lethal force.
The West Bank situation was deemed “alarming and urgent” by the United Nations human rights organisation after last year.
A spokesperson for Israel said in November that military tactics and weapons have been utilised more frequently by the country’s police forces. Under international human rights law, which regulates law enforcement, the deliberate application of lethal force is forbidden unless it is essential for the protection of life.
Ibtesam Asous, the mother of the men, reported observing a shift in the tactics employed by Israeli forces in the West Bank after the October 7 Hamas attacks against Israel.
She stated that they continue to behave as they traditionally did. The sole alteration was that previously, the military would discharge a salvo into an individual’s limb. However, it has grown in scope; they are now utilising rockets to bomb and murder as many people as possible.
Last year was the bloodiest on record in the West Bank, according to United Nations statistics: Israeli forces murdered 492 Palestinians, including 80 children, since the Hamas attacks in October (300 of whom were Palestinians).
The vast majority were destroyed by live ammunition.
The Palestinians killed twenty-eight Israelis, the majority of whom were civilians, in the West Bank in the previous year. Since the attacks in October, three have been slain, including two soldiers.
A Palestinian attack in Israel killed a woman and injured seventeen others this week.
According to two eyewitnesses who were present in the coffee shop on that particular morning, the army convoy departed al-Shuhada before the airstrike, between 04:00 and 04:45 local time (02:00-02:45 GMT), and no confrontations with locals occurred.
One stated that despite passing the soldiers four times, no one approached them. The bombing operation commenced once the vehicles had completely exited the village. Young males seeking warmth by sitting by fire were struck by a rocket.
An additional individual stated that the time elapsed between the army’s departure from the village and the airstrike at 05:00. During that time, a significant number of individuals, including himself, had vacated the
Coffee shop
Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic Khalid al-Ahmad recounts the Israeli troops leaving Jenin Camp in the early morning. He states that he was summoned to the village shortly after the strike, “almost 5:00 a.m.”
At approximately 5:15, the superintendent of Jenin Hospital confirmed that the bodies had been transported there.
Unidentified sources of mobile phone footage and CCTV footage from a nearby camera capture the thirty seconds leading up to the airstrike, during which a vehicle ostensibly travels along the same stretch of empty road without incident. A timestamp is not discernible within the recording.
The Darweesh siblings and their relatives gather around a fire, seated and standing. Then, an airstrike occurs.
Hazza was going to Jenin Hospital for early morning dialysis, while her siblings went to work, said their mother.
She stated that he was apprehensive about the military operation obstructing the road and wished to depart early.
Aftermath and Family’s Grief
The hospital renal unit confirmed Hazza Darweesh’s 7 a.m. dialysis appointment and gave us his name on the calendar.
Youssef Asous, the brothers’ uncle, filmed bodies on the ground following the airstrike.
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Khalid al-Ahmad, a seasoned Jenin paramedic, expressed his hopelessness at the thought of ever being able to erase the scene.
“They were children lacking weaponry,” Youssef remarked. “Had they been armed, I would have observed them.” “Only the chairs they were seated in were present.”
No matter their equipment or civilian status, all Palestinians are targets.
We provided every claim in this report to the IDF spokeswoman, who said the military had nothing further to offer.
This week marked Ibtesam Asous’s first visit to the location of the assault. Her older children tried to stop her from attending, but she wanted to see it for herself.
“As traffic roars by, I wanted to come and imagine where each of them was seated,” she explained, gesturing to various locations on the ground.
“Alaa was present, as were Ahmad, Rami, and Hazza.” I desired precise knowledge of my son’s whereabouts. It aids.”
