Horror footage has emerged of a wounded Palestinian strapped to the hood of an IDF jeep during an arrest raid in the West Bank city of Jenin as the conflict in the Middle East rages on.
The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed Saturday’s incident after it was captured on video and widely shared on social media – eliciting disgusted reactions from viewers online.
The disturbing footage showed a bloody Palestinian resident of Jenin, locally identified as Mujahed Azmi, tied to the front of the vehicle that passed between two ambulances.
In a statement, the Israeli military said Israeli forces were fired at and exchanged fire, before wounding a ‘suspect’ and apprehending him.
The IDF admitted soldiers then violated military protocol during the barbaric act.
An injured Palestinian man was filmed strapped to the bonnet of an IDF vehicle during an arrest raid on the West Bank city of Jenin on Saturday
The military vehicle passed between two ambulances with the man, identified locally as Mujahed Azmi, tied to the front
‘This morning [Saturday], during counter-terrorism operations to apprehend wanted suspects in the area of Wadi Burqin, terrorists opened fire at IDF troops, who responded with fire,’ the statement said.
‘During the exchange of fire, one of the suspects was injured and apprehended.
‘In violation of orders and standard operating procedures, the suspect was taken by the forces while tied on top of a vehicle.
‘The conduct of the forces in the video of the incident does not conform to the values of the IDF. The incident will be investigated and dealt with accordingly.’
Azmi’s family said that when they asked for an ambulance, the army took him, strapped him to the bonnet of their jeep and drove off – even though he was injured.
He was eventually transferred to the Red Crescent for treatment.
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Speaking to Mondoweiss, a 13-year-old who witnessed an Israeli military operation carried out by special forces on Saturday in Jenin said: ‘When I saw the occupation soldiers shooting inside the room, I put my head under the blanket and hid’.
Another alleged eyewitness told the publication: ‘They (Hamas militants) appeared to be toying with him for amusement’.
There has been a surge in violence in the West Bank since the beginning of the Israel-Gaza war on October 7.
Hamas’ unprecedented attack on a southern Israel music festival resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli official figures.
During their attack, militants also seized around 251 hostages. Israel estimates 128 of them remain in Gaza including 36 who the military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,971 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.
The shocking footage of the injured Palestinian man tied to the vehicles hood comes after Israel conducted airstrikes in Gaza City on Saturday that left mote than three dozen people dead, according to local officials.
The Washington Post reported that the strikes caused ‘significant damage and a massive crater… in the densely built al-Shati refugee camp in western Gaza City’.
Israel claimed it was targeting a pair of ‘Hamas military sites’ but it was not immediately made clear how many of the casualties were civilians.
Another 18 Palestinians were killed in a strike on houses in the city’s Al Tuffah neighbourhood, the director of the Hamas-run government media office, Ismail Al Thawabta told Reuters.
The Israeli military confirmed in a statement on Saturday that the IDF fighter jets ‘struck two Hamas military infrastructure sites in the are of Gaza City,’ while adding it would release more details later.
Hamas did not comment on whether its military infrastructure had been hit, as per the Israeli claim.
Hamas said the attacks targeted the civilian population. The group vowed in a statement: ‘The occupation and its Nazi leaders will pay the price for their violations against our people.’
The site of Israeli strikes on houses, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, at al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, June 22, 2024
People make their way through the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israeli bombardment at al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza City
Rescuers douse the flames on a building destroyed during Israeli bombardment at al-Shati refugee camp on Saturday
A boy carries salvaged items from the rubble of a building destroyed by Hamas militants at the Gaza City refugee camp. Israel claimed it was targeting a pair of ‘Hamas military sites’ but it was not immediately made clear how many of the casualties were civilians
The International Committee of the Red Cross said 25 people were killed in shelling on the al-Mawasi area that damaged its Gaza office on June 21, 2024
A Palestinian man points to ashes in a tented area, the day after a strike on the al-Mawasi area, northwest of the Palestinian city of Rafah on June 22, 2024
The series of airstrikes followed a deadly incident on Friday which saw ‘heavy calibre projectiles’ landing near an office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the Mawasi area of Rafah.
Some 25 people died and 50 were left injured as a result of the attack, the Hamas-run health ministry said.
The ICRC condemned the incident in a statement posted to X, formerly Twitter.
‘Firing so dangerously close to humanitarian structures puts the lives of civilians and Red Cross staff at risk,’ it wrote.
‘This grave security incident is one of several in recent days; previously stray bullets have reached ICRC structures. We decry these incidents that put the lives of humanitarians and civilians at risk.’
Israel claimed it had not directly attacked a Red Cross facility, though the military said it would investigate the allegations.
Saturday’s incident also recalled scenes from the Second Intifada – ‘The Second Uprising’ by Palestinians against the Israeli occupation between 2000 and 2005 – when Israeli troops were criticised for tying Palestinians, including a 13-year-old boy, to the front of an army vehicle.
The United Nations dubbed the incident as an example of ‘human shielding in action’.
The use of human shielding is prohibited by international law, and the IDF was banned from using Palestinian civilians as human shields by the Supreme Court but has ben accused of using the practice on multiple occasions since.