The Israeli army admitted having killed a United Nations (UN) worker with tank fire, having previously refused responsibility, during an incident in the Gaza Strip last month.
After a member of the UN staff was killed when a United Nations complex in Deir al-Balah was damaged on March 19, Israeli Defense Forces (FDI) said that it had not struck the site.
But the FDI said Thursday that the first conclusions of its investigation into the incident said that its troops had in fact killed the United Nations worker after having wrongly identified the building as a “enemy presence”.
He said in a press release: “The building was struck due to the evaluated enemy presence and was not identified by forces as a UN installation.”
These preliminary results have been shared with the UN and the complete conclusion will also be provided, he said.
He added: “The IDF regrets this serious incident and continues to carry out in -depth examination processes to draw operational lessons and assess additional measures to prevent such events in the future.
“We express our deep sadness for the loss and send our condolences to the family.”
The incident, who killed the United Nations Bulgarian worker, Marin Valev Marinov and seriously injured five other UN staff members, one day came after Israel has renewed his offensive against Hamas after a two-month cease-fire collapsed.
At the time, the UN secretary general António Guterres called for a complete investigation into the incident, while a spokesperson said: “The locations of all the UN premises are known from the parties to the conflict, which are linked by international law to protect them and maintain their absolute inviolability.”
After the attack, the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) said that “explosive ammunition had been abandoned or dismissed” in a guest house, which was in an “isolated” site. Its executive director, Jorge Moreira da Silva, said that it was “not an accident”.
The FDI said in a press release on the day of the attack: “Unlike reports, the FDIs did not hit a United Nations complex in Deir El-Balah. The IDF calls on the media to act with caution concerning unaccountable relationships.”
Images verified by the BBC have shown injured people – two wearing Blue ONC jackets – arriving in a hospital in an ambulance and a United Nations car.
In addition, the FDIs declared earlier this week that “professional failures” had led to the murder of 15 emergency workers during an incident in Gaza last month.
The Gaza Ministry of Health, led by Hamas, said that at least 1,978 people had been killed since Israel has renewed its offensive on the territory, with at least 50 reported on Thursday by Israeli strikes.
Israel says that it exerts military pressure on Hamas to release the 59 hostages it holds, of which 24 are considered alive.
He also blocked all humanitarian aid deliveries and other supplies in Gaza for seven weeks. The UN says that it is “to deprive people more of the means of survival and to undermine all aspects of civil life”.
The Israeli army launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross -border attack on October 7, 2023, during which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
Since then, more than 51,300 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Ministry of Health in the territory.
