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<h1 class="gmail-">'We are holding slaves': Israeli soldier
reveals systematic use of Palestinian 'human shields' in Gaza</h1>
<p class="gmail-">The soldier revealed that the Israeli Military
Police are investigating just a few cases to give the
impression that the practice is rare</p>
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<p><span style="color:rgb(84,88,94)">MAR 14, 2025 -<font
size="1"> </font></span><font size="1"><a
href="https://thecradle.co/articles/we-are-holding-slaves-israeli-soldier-reveals-systematic-use-of-palestinian-human-shields-in-gaza"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">https://thecradle.co/articles/we-are-holding-slaves-israeli-soldier-reveals-systematic-use-of-palestinian-human-shields-in-gaza</a></font></p>
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alt="" width="504" height="284" style="margin-right: 0px;"
moz-do-not-send="true"><span>(Photo credit: Oren
Cohen/Flash90)</span></div>
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<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">An Israeli soldier
</span><a
href="https://www.haaretz.co.il/opinions/2025-03-13/ty-article-opinion/.premium/00000195-8a15-dc7b-adb7-cefda5d30000"
moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:rgb(74,110,224)">disclosed</span></a><span
style="color:rgb(14,16,26)"> in a March 14 <i>Haaretz</i>
op-ed that the military's practice of using
Palestinians as human shields in Gaza is far more
common than acknowledged and that a recent
investigation was intended to create the false
impression that such incidents are infrequent.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">“I saw that six
investigations were opened by the Military Police
(MP) regarding the use of Palestinians as human
shields, and I almost choked. I've seen cover-ups in
my life, but this is a new low,” the soldier
expressed.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">“In Gaza, human
shields are used at least six times a day. If the
Military Police want to do their job seriously, they
should open at least 2,190 investigations. But the
MP just want to pretend to the world that we're
investigating ourselves, so they find a few
scapegoats and pin everything on them,” the soldier
stated, following nine months of combat in the
strip.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">He explained that
Palestinian civilians were forced to enter homes in
Gaza to check for Hamas fighters or explosives and
make sure it was safe for the soldiers to enter
themselves. The soldiers refer to Palestinians
forced to clear homes in this way as “Shawish” or
“slaves.”</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">Sometimes, Shawish
are sent to houses simply to set fire to or blow up
the house.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">During the first
months of the Israeli ground invasion, soldiers
primarily used dogs or robots to clear homes.
However, the practice of using civilians as human
shields expanded over time.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">“I didn't
understand back then how common it would become.
Today, almost every company holds 'Shawish,' and
infantry forces don't enter a house before the
'Shawish' clears it,” he explained.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">This means there
are at least four Palestinians held against their
will as human shields in each platoon, 12 in each
battalion, and 36 in each brigade.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">According to the
soldier, the most senior levels of the Israeli
military in Gaza have known about human shields for
more than a year, and no one tried to stop it. “On
the contrary, it was defined as an operational
necessity.”</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">“We're holding a
group of slaves, and the MP are trying to cover it
up with six investigations,” the soldier concluded.</span></p>
<p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">The military's use
of human shields story was first revealed by <i>Haaretz</i>
in August last year. A senior military source there
said that both the Chief of Staff and the outgoing
Southern Command Major General knew about the
procedure.</span></p>
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