Amnesty International is calling for a war crimes investigation into an Israeli attack that killed at least 36 Palestinians sheltering in tents in west Rafah on May 26, including a toddler and a woman who were decapitated by metal fragments, Al Jazeera reports.
Amnesty weapons experts who analysed photographs taken after the attack found Israeli forces dropped US-made 113kg GBU-39s, “capable of throwing metal fragments hundreds of metres”.
Amnesty said it identified four fighters killed in the attack, but questioned Israel’s claim it used “the smallest munitions which can be launched by fighter jets” and said it appeared the attack was likely “disproportionate and indiscriminate”.
“The Israeli military would have been fully aware that the use of bombs that project deadly shrapnel across hundreds of metres … would kill and injure a large number of civilians,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research and Advocacy.
“Under international humanitarian law, the presence of fighters in the targeted area does not absolve the Israeli military of its obligations to protect civilians,” she added.
