Israeli contractors are demolishing homes in Gaza while playing a central role in the killing of hundreds of Palestinians at aid distribution points set up by the US and Israel backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz has revealed.
Contractors receive approximately $1,500 for every house they demolish, a veteran Israeli soldier told Haaretz.
"They're making a fortune. From their perspective, any moment where they don't demolish houses is a loss of money, and [Israeli] forces have to secure their work,” he added.
“The contractors, who act like a kind of sheriff, demolish wherever they want along the entire front."
The contractors’ work brings them in close proximity to aid distribution points, where Palestinians go desperately to seek aid.
Their security details are relatively small however, so it is in the contractors’ interest to start incidents in order to gain extra protection from the Israeli army while they demolish more Palestinian houses, even if it that means Gazans are killed.
“In order [for them] to protect themselves, a shooting incident breaks out, and people are killed," the soldier said.
"These are areas where Palestinians are allowed to be – we're the ones who moved closer and decided [they] endangered us. So, for a contractor to make another 5,000 shekels [1,500 dollars] and take down a house, it's deemed acceptable to kill people who are only looking for food."
An Israeli officer said that Brigadier General Yehuda Vach, who commands the Israeli army’s 252nd division, had originally began the policy of shooting at Palestinians waiting for UN aid trucks, and other Israeli officers had accepted it “without question”, continuing to fire on Palestinian aid seekers.
The Israeli army regularly fire shells and bullets at Palestinians desperately seeking aid in Gaza.
"Technically, it's supposed to be warning fire – either to push people back or stop them from advancing," the soldier told Haaretz. "But lately, firing shells has just become standard practice. Every time we fire, there are casualties and deaths, and when someone asks why a shell is necessary, there's never a good answer. Sometimes, merely asking the question annoys the commanders."
Israeli soldiers have described aid distribution sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation as “killing fields”, saying that they targeted crowds of aid seekers as if they were "an attacking force," instead of using other non-lethal weapons to organise and disperse crowds.
Over 100 people were killed in Gaza on Friday, most of them seeking aid. At least 549 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the past four weeks while desperately trying to access aid.
The total death toll from Israel’s war on Gaza stands at over 56,200 according to the Gaza Health Ministry, with some other estimates suggesting much higher figures. Tens of thousands of uncounted victims are believed to be buried under the rubble of destroyed buildings.