November 2023 Israeli airstrike on medical services in the Gaza Strip
| Al-Shifa ambulance airstrike |
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| Type | Airstrike |
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| Location | |
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| Date | 3 November 2023; 5 months ago (2023-11-03) |
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| Executed by |  Israel |
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| Casualties | 15 killed
60 injured |
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On 3 November 2023, amid the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip and siege of Gaza City, an Israeli airstrike hit an ambulance convoy departing from al-Shifa Hospital carrying critically injured patients.[1] The strike killed 15 people and wounded dozens (60 people).[1] The Palestine Red Crescent Society, which was part of the convoy, said that all 15 casualties were civilians.[2][3]
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged that it carried out the airstrike,[4] and said that Hamas militants were killed in the attack[2][5][6] and that one of the ambulances was being used to transport Hamas personnel and weaponry.[7] The Gaza Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas government, denied any military use of the ambulances.[8] Human Rights Watch said it "did not find evidence that the ambulance was being used for military purposes". The Washington Post analyzed the videos and found no evidence of weapons or individuals in military clothing. The airstrike was condemned by the World Health Organization, while Human Rights Watch labelled the incident "apparently unlawful" and called for the attack to be investigated as a potential war crime.
Background
Prior to the attack and since the start of the war, Israel had attacked 7 other PRCS ambulances, and killed 4 of its personnel, the organization said.[9][10]
Al-Shifa Hospital is the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip.[7] In the week prior to the attack, the IDF said that al-Shifa was "the site of a significant Hamas command and control center".[7]
On 16 October 2023, Israel ordered Al Shifa Hospital, and the rest of northern Gaza, to evacuate. Because of insufficient beds in the southern Gaza Strip and no means of transporting patients, such as newborns in incubators or patients on ventilators, the evacuation orders were widely regarded as impossible to comply with.[11]
On 1 November 2023, it was announced that the Rafah Border Crossing would be open for foreign nationals and seriously injured patients.[12] Hamas initially proposed evacuating wounded Hamas fighters as part of limited evacuations, but this was rejected.[13]
On 2 November 2023, the IDF encircled Gaza City in the context of the 2023 Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.[14][15]
Airstrike
The Israeli airstrike came as an ambulance convoy departing from al-Shifa Hospital carrying 15-20 critically injured patients.[1][8][16] The convoy had been bound for the recently reopened Rafah crossing with Egypt when it came under attack.[1][8][16] The convoy was attacked at multiple locations, including outside of the hospital gate and at Ansar Square.[8][16] The strike killed 15 civilians, according to the PRCS.[2][3] Gazan health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra stated that 15 people had been killed and 60 wounded.[6]
Following the strike, graphic footage emerged on social media of about a dozen people lying prone amid pools of blood, as people rushed to help.[8] Also at the scene was a dead horse tied to a cart, as well as a blood-splattered Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance.[17] Palestinian health authorities had announced the departure of the ambulance convoy in advance.[8] Al-Qudra stated: "We informed the Red Cross and the Red Crescent, we informed the whole world, that those victims were lined up in those ambulances. This was a medical convoy."[1] The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) confirmed to CNN that they received a request to escort the convoy, but said that it was ultimately not part of the convoy.[7] The ICRC added “No doctors, nurses, or any medical professionals should ever die while working to save lives.”[18]
The Palestinian Red Crescent confirmed that one of its ambulances was hit, though its staff were unharmed. However, a spokesperson noted that the area of the strike was hit was "extremely crowded" with civilians at the time.[1]
The hospital director stated that the names of the injured in the ambulance convoy were on a list of authorized evacuees, and Egypt's health ministry that only 17 of the anticipated 28 injured evacuees passed into Egypt on 3 November 2023 as a result of the airstrike.[19][20]
Witnesses of the airstrike
Bisan Owda, a Palestinian filmmaker, happened to be in close proximity when the attack occurred. She recounted to the BBC the harrowing scene of individuals losing their limbs and struggling to carry the injured, while others were desperately searching for their loved ones amidst the chaos. Moreover, apart from the patients seeking medical assistance at Al-Shifa, numerous individuals had sought refuge from the Israeli air strikes in that vicinity.[21]
Confirmation by Israel
The Israeli military confirmed the strike, stating its assessment that one of the ambulances was being used by a "Hamas terrorist cell", and was close to their position.[8] The Israeli military stated that Hamas fighters were killed in the strike.[1][8] The military provided no evidence for these statements,[22] but stated on 3 November 2023 that it intended to publish additional details about the airstrike and that it had already shared intelligence with cooperating agencies,[23][24] while adding that Hamas commonly used ambulances to move fighters and weapons. Hamas denied both.[25]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) stated it found no evidence of any military usage of the ambulances. HRW interviewed interviewed several witnesses, including an Anadolu Agency journalist and verified that his photos and videos placed him at the time and location of the airstrike.[26]
The Washington Post reported that video of the aftermath "showed women and children among the casualties, and no weapons or individuals wearing military clothing could be seen".[27]
While Israel stated that it only struck one ambulance, the Palestinian Red Crescent contradicted this, saying Israel had targeted multiple different ambulances.[9]
Reactions
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that he was, "utterly shocked by reports of attacks on ambulances evacuating patients close to Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, leading to deaths, injuries and damage."[1][17] UN chief António Guterres stated he was "horrified" by the attack.[28] Doctors Without Borders condemned the ambulance attack.[29]
On 7 November, Human Rights Watch determined that the strike was "apparently unlawful and should be investigated as a possible war crime", noting that ambulances and other medical transportation must be allowed to function and be protected in all circumstances". It added that the use of ambulanced for military purposes would also be against the rules of war, but it had found no evidence of this.[26] Remarking on an IDF spokesman telling an Israeli outlet that day "Our forces saw terrorists using ambulances as a vehicle to move around. They perceived a threat and accordingly we struck that ambulance", Human Rights Watch said ambulances would only lose their protections under international law if they were committing "acts harmful" to Israel, with their Middle East and North Africa director saying "For the Israeli authorities to claim that their deadly November 3 attack on an ambulance in a crowded area was lawful, they need to do more than just insist that Palestinian fighters were using an ambulance as transport."[26]
