Aid Workers in Mass Graves

23 March 2025

On March 23, 2025, Israeli forces killed 15 aid workers in Rafah, Gaza, including paramedics from the Palestine Red Crescent, civil defense staff, and a UN employee. The workers were responding to earlier strikes when their clearly marked vehicles were targeted. Their bodies were later found buried in a mass grave. One of the two survivors, paramedic Assad al-Nsasrah, recounted that Israeli troops continued to fire on injured medics calling for help. He was detained, subjected to 37 days of torture, and released following international pressure. Israel initially denied wrongdoing but, after video evidence surfaced, admitted “professional failures” and dismissed a commander. UN and humanitarian agencies have called for independent investigations, citing serious violations of international law.