Israeli soldiers accused of widespread use of human shields in Gaza – Middle East crisis live

The two Israeli soldiers who spoke to the AP – and a third who provided testimony to Israeli non-governmental organisation Breaking the Silence – said commanders were aware of the use of human shields and tolerated it, with some giving orders to do so. Some said it was referred to as the “mosquito protocol” and that Palestinians were also referred to as “wasps” and other dehumanising terms.

The soldiers said they first became aware human shields were being used shortly after 7 October 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, and that it became widespread by the middle of 2024. Orders to “bring a mosquito” often came via radio, they said – shorthand everyone understood. Soldiers acted on commanding officers’ orders, according to the officer who spoke to the AP.

He said that by the end of his nine months in Gaza, every infantry unit used a Palestinian to clear houses before entering. “Once this idea was initiated, it caught on like fire in a field,” the 26-year-old said. “People saw how effective and easy it was.”

He described a 2024 planning meeting where a brigade commander presented to the division commander a slide reading “get a mosquito” and a suggestion they might “just catch one off the streets”.

The officer wrote two incident reports to the brigade commander detailing the use of human shields, reports that would have been escalated to the division chief, he said. The Israeli military said it had no comment when asked whether it received them.

One report documented the accidental killing of a Palestinian, he said – troops did not realize another unit was using him as a shield and shot him as he ran into a house. The officer recommended the Palestinians be dressed in army clothes to avoid misidentification.

He said he knew of at least one other Palestinian who died while used as a shield – he passed out in a tunnel.