Israeli military lawyer raised concerns over civilian casualties in Gaza, report says

A senior Israeli military lawyer has issued a “strong” letter to Major-General Yaron Finkelman, commander of the Southern Command, criticising inadequate assessments of civilian populations in areas targeted by the military in the Gaza Strip, Israel’s Army Radio has reported.

Journalist Doron Kadosh said that Military Advocate General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi expressed concerns over the potential impact on both humanitarian aid distribution and air force strikes, particularly regarding “collateral damage” to uninvolved civilians.

The letter triggered an internal inquiry, which concluded that “there were no deficiencies in the scope of humanitarian aid that entered Beit Lahiya, and that the firing and attacks in the area did not cause any unusual harm to uninvolved people.”

The UN and other aid organisations active in Gaza have condemned Israel for the inadequacy of humanitarian aid and the high number of civilian casualties.