Investigation Reveals Unannounced Artillery Strike in Southern Gaza
The Israeli military (IDF) has admitted to conducting an artillery strike in the al-Mawasi area near Khan Younis in southern Gaza. This admission came after an investigation by BBC Verify uncovered evidence of the previously unacknowledged incident.
The strike, which occurred on Sunday evening, reportedly resulted in the death of at least one Palestinian and injured 30 others, according to figures from the Kuwaiti Field Hospital.
The incident happened hours after a separate, larger event near an aid distribution centre in Rafah, where the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency reported 31 Palestinians were killed. Footage circulating online initially appeared to show the aftermath of the Rafah incident. However, while reviewing this footage, BBC Verify identified that some clips depicted a different strike altogether, located in nearby Khan Younis.
BBC Verify’s Findings Prompt IDF Admission
The strike in Khan Younis had not been disclosed by the IDF through its regular operational updates. BBC Verify’s team utilized open-source investigation techniques, including geolocation, to pinpoint the location of the blast footage to al-Mawasi, a coastal strip of Khan Younis. Their analysis confirmed the site was approximately 4.5km (2.8 miles) away from the Rafah aid distribution centre. By examining the position of the sun in the footage and correlating it with testimony from a local journalist, BBC Verify ascertained the strike took place around 19:00 local time on Sunday, significantly later than the Rafah incident.
It was only when directly approached by BBC Verify with their findings that the IDF admitted responsibility for the al-Mawasi strike. The military stated it was an artillery strike that resulted from “technical and operational errors.” The IDF claimed troops had fired towards a designated “target,” but the artillery shell had “deviated” and “wrongfully hit the Mawasi area.” The military did not provide evidence to support these assertions and stated the incident was “under review.”
Rare Admission of Error
Admissions of this nature by the IDF are uncommon during the conflict in Gaza. A BBC Verify analysis of the IDF’s official Telegram account found only four previous instances of the military admitting to a “mistake,” “technical,” or “operational” error related to the war since it began in October 2023.
Footage reviewed by BBC Verify showed chaotic scenes at the strike site in Khan Younis, which is an area where many displaced Palestinians have been sheltering in tents. Bloodied bodies were visible amidst dust clouds, with women and children seen running and screaming. Ambulances were called to the scene to transport the injured. BBC Verify was able to cross-reference injured individuals seen in the immediate aftermath footage with later images from the hospital.
The United Nations estimates that around 90% of Gaza’s population, which totals 2.1 million people, has been forced to flee their homes due to the conflict, with many seeking refuge in areas like al-Mawasi.
Context and Related Events
The distinction between the Khan Younis strike and the Rafah incident became a point of contention between the BBC and the White House. After BBC Verify published a post debunking claims that the Khan Younis footage was connected to the Rafah killings, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt mistakenly claimed it meant the BBC had retracted its coverage of the Rafah event. The BBC issued a statement calling her comments “misleading” and clarifying that she had “conflated” the two separate stories, affirming that it had not removed any story and stood by its journalism.
The broader conflict began following the Hamas cross-border attack on Israel in October 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and saw 251 others taken hostage. According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, at least 54,607 people have been killed in Gaza since October 7th, including 4,335 since Israel resumed its offensive on March 18th. Regarding the Rafah aid incident, the Israeli army initially denied firing on Palestinians near the site, but a military source later told BBC Verify that troops had fired warning shots.
References
- https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr7zplv35l1o
- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cr7zplv35l1o
- https://gijn.org/stories/bbc-open-source-investigate-gaza/
- https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-09-07/israel-hannibal-directive-kidnap-hamas-gaza-hostages-idf/104224430
