Israeli soldiers admit civilians killed in targeted buildings in Gaza

Israeli soldiers revealed Friday that the army killed Palestinian civilians who entered previously targeted buildings in the Gaza Strip, according to a media report.

The Haaretz newspaper in Israel said the army "does not routinely update its list of targets in Gaza, nor does it indicate to forces on the ground which structures are no longer being used" by fighters.

"As a result, anyone-including noncombatants-who enters such a building risks being attacked," it said.

The army claimed that its reported death toll of militants only includes individuals confirmed as such. However, "testimonies from soldiers who served in Gaza suggest a different reality."

A targeting officer from an Israeli combat brigade told Haaretz that, according to the guidelines, "an active building will always remain an active building, even if the 'terrorist' there was killed six months ago."

A senior officer corroborated those claims, stating that "there were targets that suddenly came back to life,"

"So if someone decides to go into a building in search of a hiding place, the building will be struck," said the officer.

In some areas, such as the Netzarim corridor in central Gaza, instructions were reportedly given to target "anyone who entered a building regardless of who they are, even if they were just looking for shelter from the rain," according to soldiers' testimonies.

Another discharged officer from the 252nd Division said snipers were authorized to consider civilians entering specific areas as fighters. "We're killing civilians there who are then counted as 'terrorists,'" he said.

The army spokesperson's "announcements about casualty numbers have turned this into a competition between units. If Division 99 killed 150 [people], the next unit aims for 200," he added.

The daily noted that "earlier this week, Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry announced that the death toll in Gaza since the beginning of the war has exceeded 45,000 people."

"Information published by the ministry has previously been verified by international organizations and governments and found to be credible," it added.

The Haaretz report emphasized that "Israel disputes the figures. However, Israel is not itself counting or publishing the number of civilian Palestinian deaths in the current conflict, unlike in previous wars."

According to the Israeli military, of those killed, the army "believes with a high degree of certainty" that 14,000 are fighters, and "a somewhat lesser degree of certainty" that 3,000 are fighters.

The Israeli military has not responded to the Haaretz report.

Israel launched a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed more than 45,200 people, mostly women and children, since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, 2023.

On Nov. 21, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its deadly war on Gaza.