Translated Content:
On Wednesday, the Israeli enemy targeted ambulance teams from the Islamic Health Authority, the Islamic Message Association, and the Nabatieh Ambulance Association in the town of Mayfadoun, Nabatieh District, with three successive strikes. This resulted in the martyrdom of four paramedics: two from the Islamic Health Authority, one from the Islamic Message Association, and one from the Nabatieh Ambulance Association. Six others from the three organizations were wounded.
According to information gathered from videos recorded by the Islamic Health Authority and the Nabatieh Ambulance Association, a statement from the Ministry of Health, and photojournalist Abbas Faqih, the first strike occurred while a team from the Islamic Health Authority was en route to the site of an airstrike in Mayfadoun, resulting in the martyrdom of two paramedics. The second strike targeted a team from the Islamic Health Authority and the Islamic Message Association who responded to a distress call from the targeted team, wounding three paramedics. The third strike occurred after a team from the Nabatieh Ambulance Association arrived, resulting in the martyrdom of one of its members and one from the Islamic Health Authority, and wounding three others.
The martyrs are: Mahdi Abu Zeid from the Nabatieh Ambulance Association, Fadl Ali Sarhan from the Islamic Message Association, and Saeed Hussein Haribi and Ali Al-Hadi Shadi Sabra from the Islamic Health Authority.
The Nabatieh Ambulance Association published a video, filmed by a camera mounted on one of its paramedics, documenting the third airstrike that occurred while paramedics from the three ambulance services were evacuating wounded and one of the martyrs killed in the two previous attacks.
The most serious aspect of the Mefdoun attack on the ambulance teams, beyond its being part of a pattern of repeated Israeli targeting of ambulances, is that it targeted three teams from three different ambulance services in succession. According to a statement from the Ministry of Health, this reflects “the Israeli enemy’s insistence on preventing paramedics from carrying out their rescue work in any way possible, to the point that they have become a target for the enemy, who relentlessly pursues them.”
Documenting the Crime
Al-Mufakkira reviewed the full video, which begins by showing paramedics in their uniforms from the three ambulance services working to transport wounded and a martyr from the site where the ambulance teams that arrived earlier were targeted. In the video, one of the paramedics from the Nabatieh Ambulance Service asks the other paramedics if there are any other casualties. The other paramedic replies, “There are two martyrs down there,” referring to the two martyrs killed in the previous attacks.
The camera documents the moment of the third airstrike from inside an ambulance containing a martyr and a wounded person. The camera also captures the injury of one of the two accompanying paramedics from the Nabatieh ambulance service. In subsequent scenes, the camera shows members of the Lebanese Civil Defense extracting the martyred driver and working to evacuate the wounded. Shrapnel marks are also visible on the Nabatieh ambulance.
The video shows that all the vehicles at the scene evacuating the wounded from the first airstrike were ambulances, and it also shows the inside of each ambulance containing medical and first aid equipment. The video also shows that everyone at the scene—whether wounded, martyred, or alive—working to evacuate the injured, is a paramedic clearly wearing their uniforms.
No military or combat equipment is visible in the video.
With the continued targeting of ambulance teams by the Israeli occupation, this video underscores the importance of paramedics carrying cameras to document the crimes committed against them and to serve as crucial evidence of these crimes.
Calls for the Protection of Ambulances
In a statement issued today, the Ministry of Health asserted that “these scenes provide irrefutable evidence that ambulance crews have been targeted directly and systematically. We bring this matter to the attention of the United Nations and relevant international human rights organizations, as well as to the conscience of the world. We also want it to remain a living testament for our children and future generations to the extent of the crimes committed by Israel against humanity and humanitarian work.”
In another statement issued yesterday, the Ministry said that “this heinous crime reflects the Israeli enemy’s insistence on preventing paramedics from carrying out their rescue work in any way possible, to the point that they have become a target for the enemy, who relentlessly pursues them in a blatant violation that confirms the disregard for all norms and principles established by international humanitarian law.”
The Ministry appealed to international humanitarian organizations to work to put an end to this dangerous violation of the wounded person’s right to rescue and the paramedic’s right to protection, in order to uphold human conscience and the sanctity of international law.
The Regional Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights condemned the targeting of paramedics yesterday, calling for “respect and protection of medical personnel exclusively engaged in medical duties at all times.” It stated that “deliberately targeting civilians constitutes a war crime” and that “accountability is essential.”
The World Health Organization, in a previous statement issued on March 14, emphasized “the need to protect health workers at all times.”
According to the cumulative report on the toll of the aggression from March 2 to April 16, 93 health workers were killed in Israeli airstrikes, and 225 were injured.
Indications of a War Crime
According to the legal team at “Al-Mufakkira,” international humanitarian law grants special protection to medical personnel, means of transport, and medical and relief facilities, recognizing the vital humanitarian role they play in saving lives.
The rules of war stipulate that medical personnel must be respected and protected at all times. Medical centers, ambulance stations, and medical transport vehicles (both military and civilian) are also protected, as are relief organizations affiliated with a party to the conflict, provided they are dedicated solely to medical and relief purposes.
Civilians and medical personnel do not lose this protection simply because they belong to civilian bodies affiliated with an organized armed group. Their humanitarian mission of treating and transporting the wounded remains protected under international law. International humanitarian law prohibits preventing or obstructing the delivery of medical aid to the wounded and sick, whether civilians or combatants, and obligates parties to the conflict to facilitate the access of humanitarian relief teams to affected areas.
The attack on the ambulances constitutes a war crime, as the successive strikes directly targeted three ambulance teams from different agencies, despite their clearly visible medical identification.
The Israeli military spokesperson has previously issued several threats against ambulances, claiming they are being used for military purposes, in an attempt to justify the recurring pattern of targeting paramedics. The “Notebook” showed that this general warning, based on unsubstantiated claims, opens the door to targeting an entire category of protected medical devices, thus constituting a violation of international humanitarian law.