WORLD

Israel army opens probe after viral video of soldier burning books in Gaza

Agence France-Presse · May 25, 2024, 1:54 AM

Israeli army soldiers walk near a self-propelled howitzer stationed near the border with Gaza in southern Israel on 12 October 2023. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since 7 October 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants entered Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip on 8 October. (Photo by Jack Guez / AFP)

The Israeli army said Friday it had opened an investigation after images were posted on social media showing what appeared to be an Israeli soldier in Gaza burning books, possibly including a copy of the Koran.

"An investigation was opened by the military police criminal investigation division," the army told AFP in response to questions about the images.

"The behavior of the soldier in the video is not consistent with (Israeli military) values," it said, adding that the military "respects all religions and categorically condemns such behavior".

The viral video, the authenticity of which AFP had not yet been able to verify on Friday evening, shows a soldier wearing fatigues similar to those used in the Israeli army and throwing a book that could be a copy of the Koran into a fire.

Both the video and a photo were broadcast on Israeli television.

A journalist from investigative website Bellingcat said the bookshelves that appeared in the photo matched those in a library in Gaza City's Al-Aqsa University.

Since the war in Gaza broke out, Israeli soldiers have on multiple occasions been accused of posting content on their social media accounts that degrades Palestinian civilians.

A video that went viral in November allegedly showed an Israeli soldier dedicating an explosion in Gaza to his daughter on her birthday.

Another video circulating in January purportedly showed a soldier dressing up in a dinosaur costume and loading a tank with shells.

In February, Israel's top military lawyer opened criminal investigations into several incidents of alleged misconduct by soldiers during the war.

The incidents "raised suspicion of detainee mistreatment, deaths of detainees, pillaging, and the illegal use of force", the Military Advocate General's Corps said in a statement at the time.

The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas's unprecedented attack on October 7, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Militants also took 252 hostages, 121 of whom remain in Gaza, including 37 the army says are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive against Hamas has killed 35,800 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to data provided by the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.