A retired U.S. special forces officer says Israeli troops and international contractors opened fire on unarmed civilians near aid sites in Gaza. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and IDF reject the allegations as false and politically motivated
A retired U.S. special forces officer has told the BBC he witnessed Israeli and American personnel open fire on unarmed Palestinians while working at a humanitarian aid site in Gaza.
"I witnessed the Israeli Defense Forces shooting at the crowds of Palestinians," said Anthony Aguilar, who worked with the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) after his military career, resigning after witnessing these incidents.
The BBC report features footage filmed by Aguilar, who describes multiple incidents where Israeli forces, and at times foreign personnel, allegedly opened fire on civilians waiting near aid centres.
"I witnessed the Israeli forces shooting at the crowds of Palestinians," Aguilar said. He described the use of heavy weaponry against unarmed civilians: "I witnessed the Israeli forces firing a main gun tank round from the Merkava tank into a crowd of people, destroying a car of civilians that was simply driving away from the site," he said. "I witnessed mortar rounds being fired at the crowd… to keep them controlled."
