Gaza Paramedic Freed After Being Detained For 37 Days Amid Controversy

Assad al-Nassasra, a Palestinian paramedic, has been released by Israeli forces after 37 days in detention. His detention coincided with an Israeli attack that killed 15 emergency responders, leading to widespread criticism of the military's internal inquiry into the incident.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) revealed that Assad al-Nassasra, a paramedic detained by Israeli forces during a deadly strike that resulted in the deaths of 15 fellow emergency workers, has been freed after spending 37 days in detention. His disappearance, which lasted for three weeks, was only clarified when the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) received confirmation of his detention. On Tuesday, he was one of the 10 individuals released at an Israeli border crossing with Gaza.

While the Israeli military has not issued a comment regarding his release, it acknowledged holding Mr. Nassasra during a briefing that discussed an internal investigation. This inquiry was intended to address what was described as "professional failures" regarding the accusations surrounding the deadly strike on emergency personnel. The PRCS, however, decried the findings, asserting that they were part of an effort to justify a "war crime."

The incident occurred on March 23, during which eight PRCS paramedics, six first responders from Gaza's Civil Defense agency, and a staff member of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) were killed when their emergency vehicles were fired upon while responding to a crisis in the Tal al-Sultan area of Rafah. Their remains were unearthed a week later in shallow graves alongside their decimated vehicles.

One surviving PRCS paramedic mentioned that he was also detained by Israeli forces but subsequently released along with Mr. Nassasra. Initially, the Israeli military claimed its troops targeted "suspicious vehicles" that were operating with their lights off during the night. However, this account was soon retracted after a video from one of the deceased paramedics’ phones proved that the convoy was using emergency lights. The footage reveals the ambulances eventually pulled over to the roadside, followed by the sound of gunfire as one paramedic is recorded reciting prayers, with approaching voices of soldiers heard on the tape.

On April 20, the military released an internal report summarizing the inquiry, stating that the fatalities resulted from an "operational misunderstanding" on the part of reconnaissance battalion troops, who perceived a "tangible threat." The report also acknowledged that the death of the UNRWA worker involved a breach of command orders amid combat. Following this report, the deputy commander of the reconnaissance battalion was dismissed for his role in the incident and his failure to accurately report the events.

The PRCS condemned this inquiry as indicative of a broader pattern of obfuscating reality to shield Israeli soldiers from accountability. They emphasized that the investigation's conclusions perpetuate harmful narratives that medical teams in Gaza are linked to Hamas, thereby dismissing the serious violation of international laws regarding the protection of medical personnel. A senior UN humanitarian official in Gaza has also cautioned that insufficient accountability not only undermines international law but poses a greater threat to global security.