Al-Qassam Website - In a failed attempt to prevent the capture of Israeli occupying soldier, Hadar Goldin, by Palestinian resistance fighters, Israeli occupation forces (IOF) committed carnage and killed 140 defenseless Palestinians and injured hundreds others within a few hours in Rafah city, southern Gaza, on Aug 1, 2014.

On that day, both the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas and Israeli occupation authorities had agreed to a 72-hour humanitarian ceasefire that was scheduled to begin at 8 am prompting thousands of Palestinians to prepare to return to their homes. This truce came after three weeks of intense Israeli occupation offensive against the coastal territory.

In Rafah, and ahead of the ceasefire, a group of Israeli occupation soldiers patrolling an agricultural land encountered Qassam resistance fighters and clashed with them. As a result of the firefight, two Zionist soldiers were killed and one Palestinian fighter was martyred. During the exchange, the freedom fighters affiliated with the al-Qassam Brigades, captured Israeli occupying officer, Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, and took him into a tunnel.

Upon realizing a soldier was missing, the Israeli occupation forces implemented the controversial "Hannibal Directive". This directive involved using massive firepower in the vicinity of the attack to prevent the capture, regardless of the risk posed to civilians and the captured soldier.

This tactic resulted in one of the deadliest episodes in the history of Palestine. Intensive use of deadly force by the Israeli occupation forces continued for four days, leading to the deaths of numerous civilians (with reports ranging from at least 135 to over 200), numerous injuries, and extensive destruction of civilian structures, mainly on August 1.

Amnesty International reported on the carnage, saying: “There is overwhelming evidence that Israeli forces committed disproportionate, or otherwise indiscriminate, attacks which killed scores of civilians in their homes, on the streets and in vehicles and injured many more. This includes repeatedly firing artillery and other imprecise explosive weapons in densely populated civilian areas during the attacks on Rafah between 1 and 4 August. In some cases, there are indications that they directly fired at and killed civilians, including people fleeing,”.

Given the severity of these atrocities, the report calls on the international community to support the role of the International Criminal Court in investigating the crimes under international law, as documented in the report. Moreover, all states are urged to oppose any punitive measures against Palestine for participating in the International Criminal Court or for submitting information on Israeli occupation violations to the Court or taking other actions to activate international justice mechanisms.

The al-Qassam Brigades, in the face of the ongoing Israeli occupation and aggression against the Palestinian people, reiterates its commitment to armed resistance as a legitimate right for peoples under occupation. Al-Qassam stands with the Palestinian people in their quest for self-determination and the establishment of an independent state. The tragic events in Rafah on August 1, 2014, further fuel the resistance fighters' determination to continue the struggle until the occupation is brought to an end and the rights of the Palestinian people are recognised and respected.