IDF says Hamas claims of deaths from Israeli fire near aid site in Rafah ‘exaggerated’

Responding to a question at a press conference, IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin says Hamas’s claims regarding deaths in recent incidents near the humanitarian aid distribution sites in southern Gaza are “exaggerated.”

“Hamas disseminates false information, which is unfortunately taken by some international media without verification,” he says.

“This week, it was claimed that the IDF fired on civilians at the aid distribution site. This is a totally false report, it is echoing Hamas propaganda,” he says, referring to an incident on Sunday in which Hamas claimed 31 people were killed.

He adds regarding the incident on Sunday that “this did not happen.” The IDF acknowledged firing warning shots at Palestinians about a kilometer from the aid site before it opened for distribution on Sunday, and it has dismissed claims that it happened “within” the aid site during opening hours.

Defrin says he is aware of the criticism regarding how long it takes for the military to investigate these incidents, but he says that “we will not report information or details that are not true. Reliability is critical, even if it takes time.”

Asked by a reporter what happened at the aid site in Rafah this morning and how many people the IDF shot in the area, Defrin says Hamas’s claims are “exaggerated.”

“The numbers given by Hamas were the same. It reported 29 on Sunday and today — exaggerated. We are investigating. Today we fired warning shots, didn’t hit that many people as far as we understand, we will continue to investigate,” he says.

“We fired warning shots toward a group of people who posed a threat to our forces, far from where they were supposed to be. Warning shots were fired, not to hit anyone. According to the claims, people were hit, so we are investigating, but it will take time,” Defrin adds.