Former prisoners and Israeli soldiers say Israeli forces regularly use Palestinians as human shields in Gaza, sending them into buildings and underground tunnels to check for explosive devices and armed men.
They say the practice has become commonplace over the 19 months of conflict.
In response, the Israeli military said that using civilians as shields is strictly prohibited – something they blame Hamas for.
Military leaders said they were investigating several incidents, but did not provide details.
Seven Palestinians who spoke to The Associated Press said they were used as shields in both the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank. One said he was beaten, tied up and blindfolded.
Two Israeli soldiers also described the practice of using human shields and the use of derogatory terms such as “mosquito” towards Palestinians.
One Palestinian, Ayman Abu Hamadan, told The Associated Press that during his detention in northern Gaza last year, the only time he was not bound and blindfolded was when Israeli soldiers used him as a human shield.
He said a 36-year-old man in military uniform with a camera on his forehead was forced to enter houses in the Gaza Strip to check for explosive devices and armed men.
After one unit finished working with it, it was passed on to the next.
“They beat me and said, 'You have no choice; do this or we will kill you,'” he described the two and a half weeks he spent in Israeli army custody in northern Gaza last summer.
One Israeli officer said orders often came from above, and at times almost every platoon used a Palestinian to clear positions.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
