Palestinian Territory - The Israeli military's targeting of rescue teams and paramedics during efforts to evacuate the wounded and extract survivors trapped under rubble in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, constitutes a compound war crime. It amounts to the deliberate killing of civilians by obstructing rescue efforts and leaving them to die beneath the debris, indicating Israel's intent to annihilate what remains of Palestinian society as part of the ongoing genocide
These actions constitute a grave violation of international humanitarian law, particularly the principles mandating full protection for the wounded, the guarantee of their right to evacuation and treatment, and the unhindered, safe access of relief and rescue teams. This conduct is inseparable from Israel's broader pattern of abuses in Gaza, which demonstrates a clear intent to destroy the Palestinian population through systematic means: mass killing, siege, starvation, forced displacement, destruction of infrastructure, and severe denial of basic necessities.
According to field documentation, on the evening of Tuesday, 13 May 2025, Israeli warplanes bombed the multi-storey home of Abdul Karim al-Afghani, located east of Khan Younis. The building, housing at least 24 people—most of them women and children—was struck amid intense fire belts targeting the Gaza European Hospital and its surrounding area. The house is approximately 500 meters northwest of the hospital.
Following the bombing, civil defence teams arrived at the scene to recover bodies and search for survivors. Footage captured rescuers calling out to locate anyone alive. A young girl's voice was heard pleading for help. As one rescuer moved toward the sound, Israeli warplanes suddenly struck the same site again, targeting the building and rescue teams. The attack injured two civil defence workers, while others narrowly escaped. The team was forced to withdraw, leaving the child who had cried out for help unrescued.
The next day, residents of Al-Afghani's neighbourhood issued urgent appeals for evacuation and rescue, as Israeli aircraft continued to target anyone approaching the area—whether unarmed civilians or emergency responders.
The Euro-Med Monitor field team documented the recovery of 11 bodies from a single family on the first day, among more than 35 civilians killed in the strikes. However, rescue teams were forced to withdraw as at least 14 family members, including 9 women and children, remained trapped under the rubble. Ongoing airstrikes made it impossible to reach or assist them.
Israeli forces deliberately blocked all attempts by rescue workers and victims' relatives to return to or even approach the site.
The repeated targeting of the home and rescue teams can only be seen as a deliberate decision to execute those still alive beneath the rubble and to obstruct all rescue efforts. This represents a stark example of systematic mass killing and a clear intent to exterminate civilians—not only through bombing, but also by denying them any chance of survival.
Israeli airstrikes have trapped the remaining survivors in a neighbouring home, preventing them from leaving the area amid a complete lack of food, water, and medical care. This situation condemns them to a slow, inevitable death under siege and bombardment.
Preventing search and rescue teams from reaching the wounded—a pattern repeated hundreds of times over the past 19 months—alongside the deliberate killing of injured and trapped civilians, as well as targeting non-threatening wounded individuals left to bleed to death beneath the rubble, constitutes war crimes and crimes against humanity. These acts are part of a widespread and systematic attack targeting the civilian population in Gaza and contribute to the ongoing genocide perpetrated by Israel since 7 October 2023.
The international community must urgently deploy specialised teams and mechanisms to clear debris from bombed homes and buildings, rescue those still alive beneath the rubble, and recover the bodies of the thousands who have perished since the start of the genocide.
All states, both individually and collectively, must fulfil their legal responsibilities by taking urgent action to stop the genocide in the Gaza Strip, through implementing effective measures to protect Palestinian civilians; ensuring Israel's compliance with international law and the decisions of the International Court of Justice; and holding Israel accountable for its crimes against the Palestinians. The International Criminal Court must expedite its investigations, issue arrest warrants against Israeli officials involved in international crimes in Gaza, and formally recognise these acts as genocide.
The international community must also impose economic, diplomatic, and military sanctions on Israel for its systematic and grave violations of international law. These sanctions should include an arms embargo; an end to all political, financial, and military support; freezing the assets of officials involved in crimes against Palestinians; imposing travel bans; and suspending trade privileges and bilateral agreements that provide Israel with economic benefits that enable its continued crimes.
Countries with universal jurisdiction courts must issue arrest warrants for Israeli political and military leaders involved in genocide and initiate legal proceedings, even in absentia, to fulfil their international legal obligation to prosecute serious crimes and combat impunity.
