Footage depicts alleged Israeli soldier misconduct in Gaza: Destruction of food, vandalism of shop, and home invasions
Israeli soldiers are seen callously destroying food supplies, vandalizing a shop, and looting private homes in Gaza The shocking footage captures an Israeli soldier defiantly staring into the camera before deliberately setting fire to the pile of provisions
The Israeli soldier stares directly at the camera before turning away and igniting a stack of food supplies.
"We bring light to this darkness and burn it to the ground, leaving no trace of this place," he declares as another soldier adds fuel to the flames.
The soldiers claim to be in Shejaiya, a Gaza City neighborhood within the besieged enclave, where they are recording themselves destroying food in a place where the humanitarian crisis has reached such a critical point that international organizations are issuing warnings about the risk of starvation.
This video is just one of many circulating online and reviewed by CNN, revealing Israeli soldiers in Gaza engaging in offensive and disrespectful behavior towards the civilian population. Additional videos depict soldiers looting private homes, damaging civilian property, and using racist and hateful language.
Social media posts on Thursday circulated images from Gaza showing a large group of men being detained by the Israeli military. The men were ordered to strip down to their underwear, kneel on the street, wear blindfolds, and were then packed into the cargo bed of a military vehicle.
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Images from Gaza show Israeli soldiers detaining dozens of men stripped to underwear
When questioned by CNN about the videos, the Israel Defense Forces did not deny the authenticity or location of the incidents, or the involvement of IDF soldiers. The IDF criticized the behavior of the soldiers, stating that it does not conform to its regulations, and assured that those responsible will face consequences.
"The IDF has already taken measures and will persist in addressing misconduct and behavior that contradicts the ethical standards and values expected of IDF soldiers," a statement sent to CNN read.
The videos, many of which have been shared on social media by soldiers themselves, are contributing to the global condemnation of the IDF's actions as the military offensive against Hamas in Gaza continues. Israel began the war in response to a Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli soil on October 7, resulting in the deaths of over 1,200 people and approximately 240 hostages.
According to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health in Gaza, 18,412 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in the area since the war began. While CNN cannot independently confirm this number, the IDF has stated that it has targeted over 22,000 locations in Gaza during the first six weeks of the conflict.
An image shared online shows an Israeli soldier next to a sign that says "Instead of erasing graffiti, let us erase Gaza."
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While the IDF says it is not targeting civilians in Gaza, the videos show some of its soldiers paying little respect to the lives of ordinary Gazans.
One video depicts a soldier rummaging through a woman's wardrobe and making derogatory, sexist remarks about Arab women, including her underwear. In another clip, an IDF soldier is shown vandalizing a shop in what he claims to be Jabalya, a city in northern Gaza.
He systematically destroys store items by smashing them against the floor and counter. The disturbing scene continues as he shatters the heads of two dolls taken from a shelf.
In additional videos, soldiers are depicted gleefully destroying civilian cars using a military vehicle, riding children's bicycles through the wreckage of a destroyed building, and mocking the lack of water supply in a private home.
A soldier is depicted in a photo next to a Hebrew sign on a wall in Gaza that reads: "Instead of erasing graffiti, let us erase Gaza." According to Dror Sadot of the Israeli human rights organization BTselem, these videos are just one aspect of a larger problem.
NIR OZ, ISRAEL - October 19: Israeli soldiers are seen patrolling near the Gaza border as the conflict between the Israeli army and Palestinian factions persists in Nir Oz, Israel on October 19, 2023. (Photo by Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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She told CNN, "It's not just disrespect and disregard, it's dehumanization. And when you hear what politicians and top officials are saying about Palestinians in Gaza without differentiating between Hamas and civilians, it's not surprising. It's demoralizing." Sadot believes that the IDF's policy towards Gaza is one of "revenge" for the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7th.
The scale and brutality of the attack sent shockwaves through Israel, a relatively small country with a population of less than 10 million. Many Israelis have been personally affected, either knowing someone who was killed, lost a relative or friend, or has been impacted in some other way.
"It's no surprise that the soldiers are seeking revenge when it's so obvious that Israel is retaliating against Gaza. Humiliating people and damaging property and filming it," she said.
Support for the IDF and its actions in Gaza remains strong in Israeli society, despite the increasing Israeli casualties, global opposition, and the significant civilian death toll. This sentiment persists even in light of recent videos like these.
A video posted online shows an Israeli soldier is seen smashing merchandise in a shop in Gaza.
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Retired IDF General Israel Ziv informed CNN that he had viewed the videos and was deeply troubled by them, prompting him to contact IDF commanders responsible for the soldiers in question.
"I was informed that the brigade commander will take action against those responsible once they cease fighting," he told CNN.
The IDF stated to CNN that disciplinary action would be taken against the soldiers involved. When asked for specifics about the measures, the IDF did not respond to CNN's inquiries.
The IDF announced on Thursday that they have removed the soldiers involved in singing Jewish prayers into the loudspeakers of a mosque in Jenin from operational activity and that they will be disciplined. This action was taken after separate videos of the incident surfaced. Reporting contributed by CNNs Gianluca Mezzofiore, Abeer Salman, Alex Marquardt, and Michael Conte.
