On June 25, Al Jazeera published leaked footage captured by a camera mounted on an Israeli police dog, showing the moment it attacked an elderly Palestinian woman named Dawlat Al-Tanani, aged 68. The images depict the occupation army deliberately unleashing a police dog to attack an elderly woman living in Jabalia camp, an area Israeli forces had once again stormed.
In a statement to Anadolu Agency, Dawlat Al-Tanani said that the occupying forces deliberately released the dog on her while she was sleeping in her room, and it dragged her out by her hand. A relative of the elderly woman told Anadolu Agency that despite her cries and her declaration to the soldiers that she was a civilian, they did not intervene to free her from the dog. Consequently, she suffered severe wounds, exposing the bones in her wrist after the dog tore through her flesh.
Despite her injuries, Al-Tanani managed to leave the scene. She bled for almost 12 hours before reaching the hospital, where she did not receive appropriate treatment due to the lack of resources and shortage of medicines.
The details of the attack on the elderly Palestinian woman provoked numerous responses, both regionally and internationally, condemning the ongoing crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against Gaza's civilian population. The responses also criticized the occupation army's deliberate use of various methods of intimidation against Palestinians, regardless of their gender or age.
Avichay Adraee, the occupying army's spokesperson for Arab media, posted a video on his X account in which he denied the footage published by Al Jazeera showing an elderly Palestinian woman in the Gaza Strip being attacked by a dog while she was sleeping.
Adraee also claimed that Hamas fighters kidnapped the dog and held it captive, and that the incident occurred after communication with the dog was lost. He added that the dog did not receive any orders to attack innocent people.
Misbar reviews the following indicators suggesting that the occupation army deliberately released trained military dogs from the “Oketz” unit on civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
The Occupation Relies on ‘Canine Weapons’ Against Civilians in Gaza
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip stated during a press conference held by the Ministry’s Director General, Munir Al-Bursh, and the Medical Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, Hossam Abu Safiya, in the courtyard of Kamal Adwan Hospital on December 17, 2023, that occupation forces deliberately unleashed police dogs on medical staff and displaced people.
The Ministry's Director General also detailed the events that unfolded during the hospital's siege and storming by Israeli forces. He mentioned that the occupation forces bombed the hospital’s gate and its surroundings, fired directly at its buildings, targeted the second floor, and arrested its director, Ahmed Al-Kahlot.
Al-Bursh added that during the siege, the occupation deliberately gathered displaced persons and medical staff into a large basin designated for collecting sewage water, stripped them naked, humiliated them, and unleashed police dogs on them.
Hossam Abu Safiya, the medical director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, further stated during the same press conference that Israeli forces stormed the hospital, gathered everyone onto one floor, and unleashed dogs on them. He mentioned that the dogs attacked and fatally wounded a 75-year-old man who was already injured, leading to his death the next day.
In another testimony, 67-year-old Gaza resident Yousef Faza recounted being attacked by an Israeli military dog near the Al-Shifa Medical Complex in central Gaza City. Yousef stated that after occupying soldiers stormed the building where he lives, they forcibly opened his room's door and unleashed a dog on him, which mauled his body, resulting in severe injuries to his chest and leg.
The Occupation’s Dogs Attack Palestinians in the West Bank
The incidents of Israeli military dog attacks were not limited to civilians in the Gaza Strip but also extended to Palestinians in the West Bank.
Similar to the leaked footage from the camera mounted on an Israeli military dog, which showed it attacking an elderly Palestinian woman in the Gaza Strip, footage from similar cameras in the West Bank documented the moment occupation soldiers unleashed a fierce dog on a defenseless Palestinian young man. The dog bit the hand of the young man who was handcuffed and being arrested by occupation soldiers, who did not rush to free him from the dog despite his pleas for help, screams, and declaration of surrender.
On April 19, 2024, another video showed occupation soldiers deliberately allowing a military dog to brutally maul a young Palestinian man during an attempt to arrest him in Tulkarm.
In Balata refugee camp near Nablus, a three-year-old boy named Ibrahim Hashash was attacked by an Israeli military dog after occupation forces stormed his family's home.
The child's mother recounted that the dog snatched her young son away and mauled him for over six minutes. Despite the arrival of occupation soldiers, the dog refused to obey their commands, preventing them from freeing her son from its jaws.
She continued that the soldiers had to carry both the child and the dog together in an attempt to free him from the dog’s grip. She added that, minutes later, they returned her son to her in a coma, and despite his critical condition, she was prevented from taking him to the hospital.
Dogs Maul Palestinians While Israeli Soldiers Mockingly Watch
Over the years, Palestinians have been subjected to similar incidents, notably the arrest of prisoner Mabrouk Jarrar in February 2018, when Israeli occupation forces unleashed a military dog on him in his own home.
In his account of the incident, Mabrouk Jarrar said that the military dog viciously attacked him and continued to maul his body for over 15 minutes in front of his wife and children.
Jarrar stated in documentation by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor that he was unable to escape from the dog, which attacked him more ferociously whenever he attempted to push it away. He mentioned that the dog bit every part of his body.
Jarrar also recalled that despite his health condition at the time, he was taken to an Israeli detention center where he was left bleeding for almost three hours amidst the mockery of the occupation soldiers.
Images released by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor show the aftermath of the assaults and the deep scars left by trained military dogs' attacks on Palestinian bodies.
Condemnation of Israel’s Use of Military Dogs Against Civilians
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor stated that the Israeli army’s use of police dogs to attack Palestinian civilians during its military operations in the Gaza Strip constitutes systematic and widely practiced behavior by the occupation army.
The Monitor also mentioned that its team documented dozens of cases in which the occupation forces used large police dogs during their military operations in Gaza, particularly in raids on homes, hospitals, and shelter centers.
Additionally, the Euro-Med Monitor added that the occupation's use of dogs against civilians takes various forms, such as placing surveillance cameras on their backs to scout homes and facilities before raiding them. Dogs frequently attack and maul civilians during these incursions, with no intervention from Israeli army personnel, who often command the dogs to attack civilians and subsequently ridicule the victims.
Jeremy Lawrence, spokesman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, criticized the deliberate use of police dogs by Israeli forces to attack Palestinian detainees. He stated that the Office of the High Commissioner is aware of reports documenting the intentional deployment of military dogs by the occupation army against detainees. Lawrence stressed that under international human rights law, any form of inhuman or degrading treatment and punishments is strictly prohibited. He considered Israel’s actions during its war against Gaza as violations of these principles.
Israel Boasts of the Role of the ”Oketz” Unit in Gaza
On the other hand, several Israeli reports have praised the significant role of military dogs belonging to the “Oketz” unit, trained for various tasks including attack, search, rescue, and detecting ammunition and explosives. The reports indicate how heavily the occupation army relies on these dogs, especially for leading initial reconnaissance operations that precede soldier intervention in potentially booby-trapped areas.
In late December 2023, the occupation army reported that dogs from the “Oketz” unit detected approximately 50 booby-trapped explosive devices and dozens of weapons caches. They also highlighted the important role of these dogs in supporting efforts to locate prisoners held in Gaza.
The Israeli Ministry of Defense also published on its website a collection of photos and videos showcasing the activities of this unit in the Gaza Strip. Additionally, the occupation army announced at that time that four dogs from this unit had been killed in various operations during the war.
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