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Monday, July 21, 2025
Amid scrutiny, IDF releases video showing troops holding fire as Gazans collect aid nearby
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleEmanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Amid daily reports of deadly Israeli fire near aid distribution sites in the Gaza Strip, the IDF publishes a video showing troops standing meters from Palestinians collecting food this afternoon while commanders instruct soldiers not to open fire.
“Do not open fire, nobody opens fire,” officers are heard shouting in the video published by Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson.
The video shows Palestinians collecting aid from a truck and clapping and cheering, apparently at the Israeli troops.
“Not a single shot was fired. The order was clear: do not open fire. And the Palestinians’ reaction? It wasn’t fear… it was hope. Civilians began welcoming and cheering our soldiers,” Adraee says.
“Those who have lived under Hamas’ lies know that our soldiers and our presence are a source of hope. No starvation, no deliberate killing, no targeting of those waiting for aid on purpose,” he says.
“There is Hamas propaganda with hollow media mouthpieces promoting lies to try to salvage what remains of defeated Hamas,” Adraee adds.
#خاص هكذا سقطت جميع أكاذيب حماس
في مشهد يهزّ القلب من ظهر اليوم،
جنود جيش الدفاع يقفون بثبات…
وعلى بُعد أمتار – اعداد من سكان غزة يتسلمون المساعدات الإنسانية التي دخلت قطاع غزة.لم تُطلق رصاصة.
القرار كان واضحًا: لا تطلقوا النار
اما ردة فعل الفلسطينيين؟ لم تكن خوفًا… بل… pic.twitter.com/HQQPK7t0Tw— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) July 20, 2025
The release of the video comes after dozens of Palestinians near aid distribution sites in Gaza were reportedly shot dead on Sunday, including an incident in the north of the enclave in which Hamas health authorities reported nearly 80 people were killed.
Responding to reports that some witnesses said Israeli troops shot at the crowd, the IDF acknowledged firing “warning shots to remove an immediate threat posed to the troops” in northern Gaza, but denied the steep death toll, insisting that the “reported number of casualties does not align with the existing information.”
The Times of Israel Community.