How 'Israel' likely killed its own settlers on October 7: The Grayzone

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: The Grayzone
27 Oct 2023 15:17
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The Grayzone publishes a report that covers various incidents, evidence, and testimonies that showcase Israeli fingerprints all over the killing and burning of settlers in the Gaza Envelope.

An Israeli AH-64 Apache longbow helicopter performs during an air show at the graduation ceremony of Israeli occupation Air Force pilots at the "Hatzerim" base in al-Naqab desert, occupied Palestine on June 29, 2023. (AFP)

An insightful report by The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal highlights the probable crimes committed by Israeli occupation forces against their own settlers on October 7.

Following the success of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, launched by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza, the occupation's military command and soldiers were left in disarray, as base after base fell in the hands of Resistance fighters in the Gaza Envelope.

The Israeli military apparatus took actions which most likely led it to kill a number of its own settlers, according to the report.

A collection of photo evidence, statements, and testimonies of settlers in occupied territories, was the basis for the extensive report published by The Grayzone.

In the aftermath of the wide-scale confrontations in Envelope settlements and kibbutzim, the Israeli political and military command sought to frame "Hamas" fighters for the murdering of Israeli settlers in the area. The IOF and Israeli officials carried out a systematic campaign that sought to demonize the Palestinian Resistance, equating Hamas to ISIS while showing unverified evidence of the alleged acts.

Did "Israel" kill its own settlers?

Blumenthal kicks off his article with an important question, "How many Israeli citizens said to have been 'burned alive' were actually killed by friendly fire?"

In fact, as pointed out in the report, numerous testimonies by Israelis have confirmed that the IOF attacked the people it was supposed to protect, fearing Palestinian Resistance fighters who had embarrassed their colleagues moments earlier.

In Kibbutz "Be'eri", around 4 km away from the Gaza Strip, Tuval Escapa, a member of the kibbutz's security team says that "the commanders in the field made difficult decisions – including shelling houses on their occupants in order to eliminate the terrorists along with the hostages," as quoted by Haaretz.

The QR code Erdan displayed at the UN led to a Google Drive file containing grisly images which have mostly disappeared w/o explanation

One image on the file purporting to show Israelis burned alive actually appeared to show dead Hamas fighters discarded into a dumpster by… https://t.co/Z8FRJvGqSD
— Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) October 27, 2023

Such decisions were replicated across several settlements across areas of confrontation. The reports explain that such decisions "indicate that orders came down from the military’s high command to attack homes and other areas inside Israel, even at the cost of many Israeli lives."

Other testimonies such as Yasmin Porat's, revealed that the IOF "undoubtedly" murdered multiple Israeli settlers. "They eliminated everyone, including the hostages," she told "Israel Radio", referring to occupation special forces.

Porat also pointed to the Palestinian Resistance's upholding ethical engagement, recalling that they "did not abuse us." She further said, "we were treated very humanely… No one treated us violently."

Porat's experience shows very clearly that "The objective was to kidnap us to Gaza, not to murder us," she stated.

The price was terrible

"The price was terrible: at least 112 Be’eri residents were killed," Haaretz wrote in reference to an order to shell settlement homes in the kibbutz.

"Others were kidnapped. Yesterday, 11 days after the massacre, the bodies of a mother and her son were discovered in one of the destroyed houses."

The Israeli propaganda machine has worked relentlessly to pin the deaths of settlers and children on the Palestinian Resistance. A fabrication that the Resistance burnt people alive resonated with Israeli supporters and Westerners.

Hellfire missiles burnt Israelis alive

The Grayzone's report reveals that Apache attack helicopters were deployed in Gaza's Envelope during confrontations.

The news website's Editor-in-Chief highlights the role that hellfire missiles launched from the Israeli Apaches played in exacerbating the Israeli death toll.

Israeli officials pointed to specific cases in which these helicopters unknowingly targeted settlers, in an attempt to frame the Resistance, claiming they had burned bodies alive.

Charred Israeli corpses, burnt settler homes, and burnt vehicles were most probably the work of the IOF, according to the report.

Signs including the extent of the damage dealt to areas of impact as well as the bending of the exteriors of some cars make this theory more plausible, than the one which Israeli propagandists ran with.

Pilots shoot at anything that moves

To further support this claim, in an account published in the Israeli news outlet Mako, a member of the occupation forces said, "I find myself in a dilemma as to what to shoot at."

The news outlet explains that most of the initial Palestinian force sent into the Gaza Envelope had already made its way back before eight Apache helicopters were deployed to the scene of the attack "and there was almost no intelligence to help make fateful decisions." according to the Mako report.

The news outlet says that Apache pilots did indeed testify "that they fired a huge amount of munitions, emptied the 'belly of the helicopter' in minutes, flew to re-arm and returned to the air, again and again. But it didn’t help and they understand it."

According to Blumenthal, Israeli pilots concentrated their fire on vehicles heading back to Gaza from the Nova electronic music festival and nearby kibbutzim.

They also attacked vehicles knowing that they might contain Israeli captives, as well as unarmed people near the separation fence with Gaza.

"I choose targets like that," the pilot reflected, "where I tell myself that the chance that I am shooting here on hostages as well is low."

Did Hamas rape Israelis?

The report also sheds light on a conference held by the Israeli government, where it gathered members of the media showing them baseless "evidence" of Hamas' "crimes."

One of the videos presented to reporters was footage of a burnt female corpse "with a mutilated head… The dead woman’s dress is pulled up to her waist and her underpants have been removed,” The Times of "Israel" reported.

Propagandists chose to run with the story that members of Hamas had raped the woman and burned her alive. However, Blumenthal says that the evidence shows that a powerful clast had hit the car she was in killing her instantly.

Furthermore, when Israeli officials were asked for evidence of the rape, they replied that they do, however they "cannot share it," according to The Times of "Israel".

The report explains that the vehicle was "comprehensively destroyed" at a dirt field, which indicates that it had been attacked by an Apache helicopter like in other cases.

The report lists a number of other incidents where Israeli tanks and helicopters have been suspected of mass killing Israelis, as well as evidence that shows that IOF soldiers killed dozens of people in the Nova concert in "crossfire,"

Israeli officials carry on with their campaign to defame the Resistance, providing no evidence for the heinous crimes they were accused of committing, while a mere superficial investigation shows quite the opposite.