Israel admits to firing on ambulances, Hamas denounces 'war crime'

The Israeli army admitted Saturday to firing on ambulances in Gaza, calling the vehicles "suspicious," while Hamas condemned the attack as a "war crime" that killed a rescuer and left 14 others missing.

The incident occurred Sunday in Tal al-Sultan, west of Rafah, where Israeli forces resumed their offensive on March 20, two days after breaking a nearly two-month cease-fire.

Israeli troops had just "eliminated several Hamas terrorists" when "other vehicles moved suspiciously toward the soldiers," the army said. Troops opened fire, "eliminating several Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists," it added, without mentioning any fire coming from the vehicles.

A preliminary inquiry found that "some of the suspicious vehicles" were ambulances and fire trucks, the army said, accusing Gaza militants of using ambulances for "terrorist purposes."

Gaza's Civil Defense lost contact with a six-member rescue team sent to Tal al-Sultan on Sunday. By Friday, it reported finding the body of the team's leader and their vehicles — an ambulance and a fire truck — "reduced to a heap of scrap." The Red Crescent said it was still missing nine rescuers.

Hamas political bureau member Bassem Naim called the attack a "deliberate massacre" and a "war crime."

The U.N.'s humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, condemned attacks on ambulances and rescuers in Gaza since March 18. "If international law still means anything," he said Friday, "the international community must act to enforce it."