Israeli use of human shields in Gaza was systematic: Soldiers, former detainees
TEL AVIV
Several Palestinians and soldiers told the Associated Press that Israeli troops are systematically forcing Palestinians to act as human shields in Gaza, sending them into buildings and tunnels to check for explosives or militants.
The dangerous practice has become ubiquitous during 19 months of war , they said, according to a report published over the weekend.
Dressed in army fatigues with a camera fixed to his forehead, Ayman Abu Hamadan was forced into houses in Gaza to make sure they were clear of bombs and gunmen, he said. When one unit finished with him, he was passed to the next.
“They beat me and told me: ‘You have no other option; do this or we'll kill you,'" the 36-year-old said that, describing the 2 1/2 weeks he was held last summer by the Israeli military in northern Gaza.
The only time the Palestinian man wasn't bound or blindfolded, he said, was when he was used by Israeli soldiers as their human shield, the report noted.
In response to these allegations, Israel's military said it strictly prohibits using civilians as shields — a practice it has long accused Hamas of using in Gaza. Israeli officials blame the militants for the civilian death toll in its offensive that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
“These are not isolated accounts; they point to a systemic failure and a horrifying moral collapse,” said Nadav Weiman, executive director of Breaking the Silence — a whistleblower group of former Israeli soldiers that has collected testimonies about the practice from within the military.
“Israel rightly condemns Hamas for using civilians as human shields, but our own soldiers describe doing the very same.”
Rights groups say Israel has used Palestinians as shields in Gaza and the West Bank for decades. The Supreme Court outlawed the practice in 2005. But the groups continued to document violations.
Still, experts say this war is the first time in decades the practice — and the debate around it — has been so widespread.
Some said it was referred to as the “mosquito protocol" and that Palestinians were also referred to as “wasps” and other dehumanizing terms.
The soldiers said they first became aware human shields were being used shortly after the war erupted on Oct. 7, 2023 and that it became widespread by the middle of 2024.
An Israeli soldier described a 2024 planning meeting where a brigade commander presented to the division commander a slide reading “get a mosquito” and a suggestion they might “just catch one off the streets.”
