Elderly victims of Israel’s genocide; numerous cases of execution are well-documented
Palestinians assist an elderly woman while fleeing the Israeli military attack on northern Gaza, 10 November 20Euroo
Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reports on 1 September 2024:
The Israeli occupation army’s recent killing of an elderly couple in the Gaza Strip and an elderly man in the West Bank constitute grave crimes against elderly Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory that require international investigation.
During the 330-day Israeli genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, 2,122 elderly men and women have been killed. This represents roughly 2% of the 107,000 elderly people who live in the Strip and roughly 4% of all Palestinian deaths there since 7 October 2023. These crimes, which have been committed hundreds of times, are unjustified and particularly cruel to this defenseless civilian group, which Israel has been targeting ever since it launched its large-scale attack on the Gaza Strip.
Most of these elderly victims were crushed to death under the debris of their homes or shelter centres after Israeli aircraft bombed them on their heads, or during their forced evacuations in the streets or visits to markets to meet their basic needs. Shockingly, however, dozens of them were killed directly through field executions and liquidation operations.
Following the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Khan Yunis on Friday 30 August, the discovery of the bodies of the elderly man Wajih Misbah Shaath (71 years old) and his wife Sabah Shaath (65 years old) was documented by the Euro-Med Monitor field team. The Israeli army shot the couple in their Khan Yunis home, in the south of the Gaza Strip.
Mr. Shaath’s sister-in-law provided Euro-Med Monitor with the following account of the execution of her husband’s brother and his wife, who were shot in the head: “My husband, my daughters, and I left Khan Yunis due to evacuation orders, but my husband’s brother Wajih Misbah Shaath, Abu Misbah, and his wife Sabah Shaath remained. Because of their advanced age, the difficulty of moving their belongings, the exhaustion of walking for extended distances every time the occupation issued new evacuation orders, and other factors, they decided to stay at home rather than endure the weariness of the displacement journey and the search for a safe place, which they had already gone through many times.”
She continued, “They stayed in the unlocked house because the doors were loose as a result of numerous previous attacks. We had been attempting to get in touch with them frequently since 26 August, but we had received no response. This worried us, so we reached out to friends, family, and acquaintances in the area to see if there was any update that would reassure us.”
Added Shaath’s sister in law: “My husband went home in the early hours of 30 August to see how his brother and his wife were doing after learning of the withdrawal of the Israeli army, only to discover that they had been killed by Israeli army bullets that struck them squarely in the head. Upon closer inspection, it was evident that the occupation forces had set off a hand grenade at the entrance of the house before raiding it and opening fire at the couple. Their bodies were discovered with bloodstains all over the floor of the room they were hiding in, empty bullet casings next to their blood, and bullet fragments scattered throughout the house.”