By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

The incident occurred in December 2024 when two Palestinian men, carrying a white flag, tried to cross the Netzarim corridor toward Gaza City, according to Haaretz.

The Israeli army recently promoted an officer to the ranks of battalion commanding officer, “despite a pending decision” to launch “an investigation into reports from his subordinates that he “ordered them to shoot” two Palestinians in Gaza “carrying a white flag,” Haaretz reported on Wednesday.

The paper said that the incident occurred when two Palestinian men tried to cross the Netzarim corridor northward, from Wadi Gaza near Nuseirat, toward Gaza City.

IDF promotes officer who soldiers said ordered to shoot Gazans carrying white flag https://t.co/tgx8wZPJkB

— Haaretz.com (@haaretzcom) June 4, 2025

An Israeli military drone “sent to the site spotted them carrying a white flag and waving their hands above their heads,” the report said.

Two soldiers who were in the command and control center and overheard the radio communication taking place, told the paper that the officer, who was then deputy battalion commander, “issued a shoot-to-kill order against the two men.”

Order Repeated

Another officer who bore witness to the incident yelled out a countercommand by radio, they reportedly said.

The deputy commander, according to the two soldiers cited by Haaretz, answered, “I don’t know what a white flag is. Shoot to kill.”

He “later asked, ‘Was it carried out?’; i.e., were the Gazans shot?” the report said.

Israeli Military Created ‘Kill Zones’ in Gaza With Orders to ‘Shoot to Kill’ – Report

Even though the officer who issued the countercommand reiterated that the men were carrying a white flag, the deputy commander again requested that they be targeted with a drone. The order was, however, not carried out, the report noted.

The officer who issued the countercommand was deemed “a coward” by his commanding officers.

Investigative Report

The paper said that in December 2024, Haaretz published an opinion piece by a soldier who witnessed the shooting along the Netzarim corridor. In addition, Haaretz published an investigative report into the incident.

The Israeli army summoned the soldier, Haim Har-Zahav, who had written the piece, following its publication, for a statement.

No Western Eyes Needed: Gaza is Already Seen through Palestinian Lenses

The army has, to date, “not decided whether to open an investigation into the incident,” nor has the officer been summoned for questioning.

A major in the reserves, the paper said, the soldier “is set to command an infantry battalion that has been operating in the Gaza Strip” during Israel’s ongoing military assault on the enclave.

Staggering Death Toll

Since Israel’s reneging on the ceasefire on March 18, it has killed and wounded thousands of Palestinians throughout the Gaza Strip through a bloody and ongoing aerial bombardment.

On October 7, 2023, following a Palestinian Resistance operation in southern Israel, the Israeli military launched a genocidal war against the Palestinians, killing over 54,000, wounding more than 125,000, with over 14,000 still missing.

Children among Casualties as Israeli Forces Hit Homes, Schools, Hospitals in Gaza

Despite habitual condemnation by many countries around the world of the Israeli genocide, little has been done to hold Israel accountable.

Israel is currently under investigation for the crime of genocide by the International Court of Justice, while accused war criminals — including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — are now officially wanted by the International Criminal Court.

The Israeli genocide has been largely defended, supported, and financed by Washington and a few other Western powers.

(The Palestine Chronicle)