IDF accused of ‘field execution’ of Palestinian driver bringing aid into Gaza

Displaced Palestinians still rely on food aid to survive in Gaza. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Displaced Palestinians still rely on food aid to survive in Gaza. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images IDF accused of ‘field execution’ of Palestinian driver bringing aid into Gaza The local truckers association has said it may suspend operations, after several eyewitnesses decried the murder of Ahmad Esleem A Palestinian driver bringing food aid from the World Central Kitchen (WCK) into Gaza has been killed by an Israeli soldier, according to eyewitnesses and the local truckers association, which said it may suspend operations in protest. Ahmad Esleem was shot in the head on Wednesday when an aid convoy stopped because of a breakdown to one truck soon after entering Gaza , according to three accounts. Israeli soldiers ordered the drivers to dismount and one of them shot Esleem in the head when his hands were raised. Another driver in the four-truck convoy, Diaa Mansour, said the shooting happened on the Philadelphi corridor, a military road on the southern edge of the Gaza strip. View image in fullscreen Trucks are regularly hired by charities to transport aid into Gaza. Photograph: EPA “After the truck broke down, we waited for authorisation to get out and inspect it, because every movement we make has to be coordinated in advance,” he said. “While we were waiting, an Israeli military vehicle arrived. The soldiers ordered Ahmad and me to get out of our trucks, and then they ordered another driver, Alaa Shaat, to get out as well. The driver at the front of the convoy, Fares Muheisen, remained inside his truck and didn’t get out. Aid worker who organised World Cup screenings in Gaza killed in Israeli strike Read more “They made us stand by the side of the road. They ordered me to take off my clothes and forced me to sit under the sun,” Mansour said. “Then they brought Ahmad out of his truck. One of the soldiers began talking to Ahmad while he stood with his hands raised. Ahmad did not speak Hebrew, and it seemed the soldiers did not understand his Arabic. Suddenly, they shot him. He was hit in the head and died at the scene. It appeared they were trying to find out why we had stopped, but they did not understand the situation and opened fire immediately, without any discussion or attempt to communicate.” Jihad Esleem, the deputy head of the Association of Transport Companies in Gaza and a distant relative of the victim, said that Wednesday’s convoy had been “100%” coordinated through the UN World Food Programme and the WCK food charity, and had just entered Gaza through the only crossing point still functioning for aid shipments. “An Israeli officer and several soldiers approached the drivers, asked why they were there, then ordered all of them out of their trucks. They assaulted the drivers, beat them, and forced them to strip,” Esleem said. “The moment Ahmad raised his hands in surrender, one of the soldiers drew his M16 rifle