Israel to investigate drone attack on unarmed Palestinians after video leaked

In footage obtained by Al Jazeera, four Palestinians are seen being followed by the drone, then missiles are launched at them.

Israel has said it is investigating footage that appears to show unarmed Palestinians in southern Gaza being targeted and killed by drones.

A video obtained by the Al Jazeera TV channel showed four Palestinian men being followed by drones as they walked in an open area on bulldozed tracks past half-destroyed houses in the area of Khan Younis.

A missile is then seen hitting the group, instantly killing two people.

The drone zooms in to show two bloodied, contorted bodies on the ground. A third man who wears flip-flops is then seen walking away as another projectile is fired directly towards him.

The fourth man is seen later in the footage, staggering around as he falls on to the ground and starts crawling when a missile hits him, leaving a cloud of smoke and a dead body.

Al Jazeera said the men were walking back to Khan Younis to check on their houses following weeks of bombings.

Khan Younis experienced weeks of devastating attacks earlier this year.

In footage obtained by Al Jazeera, four Palestinians are seen being followed by the drone, then missiles are launched at them.

The video, reportedly made by an Israeli recon drone in February, was recovered from the drone when it crashed in Gaza, Al Jazeera claimed.

The footage has been widely shared online, drawing condemnation for what appears to be an attack on unarmed civilians.

The Israel Defence Forces say that terrorists seen in Khan Younis have been known to pose as civilians

Francesca Albanese, the UN’s special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday pointed to the footage as “colossal amount of evidence” of war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza that the International Criminal Court needs to investigate.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told The Telegraph it was investigating the footage.

The colossal amount of evidence concerning int'l crimes committed by Israel in Gaza just over the past 6months could keep the @IntlCrimCourt busy for the next five decades, especially at the current proceedings pace. Accountability is more needed than ever. https://t.co/2dCAEKZOrr

— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) March 22, 2024

“The area documented in the footage is an active combat zone in Khan Younis that underwent significant civilian evacuation,” it said, adding that its troops had experienced “many encounters with terrorists… in civilian clothing, accessing weaponry hidden within civilian infrastructure”.

The IDF said reports about the incident had been sent for examination to an independent body commissioned by the General Staff.