The Israeli military has said “professional failures” led to the killing of 15 emergency workers in Gaza last month.

An inquiry into the incident by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) found a series of failings, including an “operational misunderstanding” and a “breach of orders”.

The deputy commander of the unit involved has been dismissed “for providing an incomplete and inaccurate report during the debrief”.

A spokeswoman for the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said the report was “invalid” as it “justifies and shifts the responsibility to a personal error in the field command when the truth is quite different”.

Fourteen emergency workers and a UN worker were killed on 23 March after a convoy of PRCS ambulances, a UN car and a fire truck came under fire by the Israeli military.

In a statement, the IDF said its troops opened fire believing they were facing a threat from enemy forces.
The IDF said its investigation found six of the casualties were Hamas members, and rejected that there had been summary executions.

The report said the incident took place in what it called a “hostile and dangerous combat zone”, and that the commander on the ground perceived an immediate and tangible threat after vehicles approached rapidly.
It blamed “poor night visibility”, which the IDF said meant the commander did not identify the vehicles as ambulances.

Israel had originally claimed troops opened fire because the convoy approached “suspiciously” in darkness without headlights or flashing lights. It said movement of the vehicles had not been previously co-ordinated or agreed with the army.

But a video found on the mobile phone of a medic who was killed showed the vehicles with their lights on and their emergency signals flashing. The footage shows the vehicles pulling up on the road when shooting begins just before dawn. The video continues for more than five minutes, with the paramedic saying his last prayers before the voices of Israeli soldiers are heard approaching the vehicles.

It also shows the vehicles were clearly marked and the paramedics wearing reflective hi-vis uniform.

The bodies of the 15 dead workers were buried in sand. They were not uncovered until a week after the incident because international agencies, including the UN, were not permitted safe passage to the area.

Reeta Chakrabarti presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Paul Adams.

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