A Palestinian man working for the World Health Organization was killed by Israeli gunfire in the Gaza Strip on Monday, according to his colleagues and the doctor who claimed his body.
Majidi Aslan, 54, was shot while driving an “internationally designated vehicle with international markings” on Salah al-Din Street, the main north-south road in the Gaza Strip, Dr. Fatih al-Lulul said.
Another WHO official, Raed Arslan, told CNN that the vehicle was on its way to evacuate patients when it was hit. He said it was marked with the World Health Organization logo “on all sides.”
In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) gave a different account of the incident and did not confirm the death.
The newspaper said Israeli forces “approached them and the Yellow Line and identified an unmarked vehicle that posed an immediate threat,” referring to the border between the Israeli-controlled Gaza Strip and other areas.
“In response, the military fired warning shots. The vehicle continued to accelerate towards the troops and then returned fire with additional artillery fire, hitting the vehicle. Preliminary examinations revealed that two WHO personnel on the ground in Gaza were passengers in the vehicle and were injured,” the statement added.
CNN has reached out to the IDF for further comment.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the organization was “devastated” to confirm Aslan’s death in a “security incident”, noting that two WHO staff were at the scene but were not injured.
Ghebreyesus did not mention the Israeli military by name in his statement. “This incident is under investigation by the relevant authorities,” he said.
Aslan’s body was taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza, where footage from CNN showed grief-stricken men crowding around him.
“Wake up, daddy, wake up!” one man shouted in disbelief.
“Although he is working with the support of international organizations, the occupation was ruthless, indiscriminate and a targeted attack,” al-Lullu said, calling it a war crime.
This month marks six months since a ceasefire took effect in the Gaza Strip, but aid groups insist it is only in name.
More than 700 Palestinians, including at least 100 children, have been killed since the start of the ceasefire, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Palestinian Medical Aid (MAP) also reports that a significant reduction in aid trucks entering the territory has led to shortages of food and humanitarian aid.
According to the WHO, more than 18,500 seriously ill people remain in need of medical evacuation from Gaza, including around 4,000 children.
