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Israeli newspaper Haaretz has reported that Israeli military personnel have admitted to receiving direct orders to open fire on unarmed Palestinian civilians near humanitarian aid distribution sites in Gaza, likening the shootings to a game similar to "Red Light, Green Light" from the popular Netflix series Squid Game.
According to testimonies published by Haaretz, Israeli soldiers, including officers, claimed they were ordered to fire live ammunition at civilians waiting for food at aid distribution sites coordinated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a U.S.- and Israeli-backed operation.
One Israeli soldier described the area as a "killing field," noting that 1 to 5 people were killed daily in his zone.
"There are no riot control methods, no tear gas — only live fire with heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, and mortars," the Israeli soldier said. "They are treated like enemies," he added.
He further added that they referred to the engagement as "Salted Fish," an Israeli variation of Squid Game's "Red Light, Green Light".
"We open fire early in the morning if someone tries to get in line from a few hundred meters away, and sometimes we just charge at them from close range. But there's no danger to the forces," an Israeli soldier added, noting: "I'm not aware of a single instance of return fire. There's no enemy, no weapons."
"Gaza doesn't interest anyone anymore," said an Israeli army reservist who completed another round of duty in the northern Gaza Strip this week. "It's become a place with its own set of rules. The loss of human life means nothing. It's not even an 'unfortunate incident,' like they used to say."
"At night, we open fire to signal to the population that this is a combat zone and they mustn't come near," the Israeli officer said to Haaretz, adding: "Once," he recounted, "the mortars stopped firing, and we saw people starting to approach. So we resumed fire to make it clear they weren't allowed to. In the end, one of the shells landed on a group of people."
"We fired machine guns from tanks and threw grenades. There was one incident where a group of civilians was hit while advancing under the cover of fog. It wasn't intentional, but these things happen," he added.
"A combat brigade doesn't have the tools to handle a civilian population in a war zone. Firing mortars to keep hungry people away is neither professional nor humane. I know there are Hamas operatives among them, but there are also people who simply want to receive aid. As a country, we have a responsibility to ensure that happens safely," the officer said
In response to the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians near aid points, the Israeli Military Advocate General has instructed the General Staff's Fact-Finding Assessment Mechanism to investigate potential breaches of international law.
Haaretz reports that these instructions were given amid international backlash.
Despite these developments, no disciplinary actions have been taken against Israeli soldiers or commanders involved, including Brig. Gen. Yehuda Vach of the Israeli army's Division 252, who reportedly authorized some of the shootings.
An Israeli army officer noted that many officers and soldiers followed Vach's instructions to fire on Palestinians without question - the same commander who previously gave orders to blow up the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital on his own initiative.
A reserve Israeli soldier confirmed the allegations and described firing artillery at Palestinians: "Recently, firing artillery shells has become standard practice. Every time we fire, there are wounded and dead. When someone asks why artillery shells are necessary, no good answer is ever given. Sometimes, just asking this question annoys the commanders."
After artillery shells were fired, Palestinians began to flee, but they were then ordered to fire at them, making escape impossible.
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In statements to the press, the Israeli army denied any orders to shoot at civilians, stating: "Israeli army directives prohibit deliberate attacks on civilians."
The Israeli army acknowledged incidents near aid zones but claimed that all actions are under review and further precautions have been implemented, including improved fencing and signage.However, legal advisors within the Israeli army have reportedly rejected the military's claims that these are isolated incidents, stating that the facts suggest widespread and systematic violations.
Aid centers operated by the GHF, set up along Gaza's Coastal Road, were reportedly scenes of systematic fire by Israeli forces.
Troops reportedly fired at civilian crowds before and after the centers opened, often from hundreds of meters away, with no evidence of threat from the civilians.
"We saw people starting to approach, so we resumed fire," one Israeli officer said. "Sometimes, we even used artillery shells," he added.
According to Haaretz, some Israeli soldiers described firing on civilians as standard practice. In some cases, those fleeing were also targeted. According to Gaza's Health Ministry, 516 Palestinians have been killed and over 3,799 injured near GHF aid sites since May 27.
The Haaretz report suggests these deaths resulted not only from Israeli army fire but also from gunfire by militias reportedly supported and armed by the Israeli army.
Israeli private contractors reportedly receive 5,000 shekels (approximately $1,500) per demolished home in Gaza. Veteran soldiers alleged that some fatal shootings occurred when contractors requested protection near distribution zones, causing confrontations with civilians.
"They [contractors] are demolishing homes wherever they can. To protect them, we open fire," one Israeli soldier said, adding: "They're making a fortune. From their perspective, any moment where they don't demolish houses is a loss of money, and the forces have to secure their work. The contractors, who act like a kind of sheriff, demolish wherever they want along the entire front."
Both Hamas and the Gaza-based Palestinian government condemned the revelations, citing the Haaretz report as proof of systematic war crimes and a "policy of genocide" by Israel under the pretext of humanitarian assistance.
"These confessions confirm that the occupying forces are deliberately starving civilians and using aid as a means to kill," Hamas said.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the humanitarian situation in Gaza "horrific," urging that "any operation that channels desperate civilians into militarized zones is inherently unsafe. It is killing people."
"People are being killed simply trying to feed themselves and their families. The search for food must never be a death sentence," Guterres added.
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