In a heartbreaking revelation, the final moments of Palestinian paramedic Rifaat Radwan have come to light through a video recorded shortly before he and 14 other humanitarian workers were killed by Israeli forces in Tel al-Sultan, southern Gaza, on March 23, 2025.
Radwan, who served with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), documented his last moments in a six-minute video recovered from his phone after his body was found in a mass grave. The video, now circulated globally, captures the intense scene as rescue workers arrived to retrieve bodies following a previous Israeli strike—only to be gunned down moments later by Israeli troops.
The massacre claimed the lives of eight PRCS medics, six members of the Palestinian Civil Defense, and one United Nations employee. According to PRCS and United Nations reports, the targeted vehicles were clearly marked with emergency symbols and their movement had been pre-coordinated with Israeli forces—disproving Israeli claims that the vehicles were “suspicious” or lacked identification.
For five days, access to the area was denied to the UN and Red Crescent. Upon eventual entry, they discovered a mass grave containing the bodies of 14 out of the 15 aid workers, along with their destroyed ambulances and a UN vehicle. Forensic analysis pointed to M16 gunfire as the cause of death, raising serious concerns over deliberate war crimes.
In the video, Radwan is seen reciting the Shahada—the Islamic declaration of faith—and asking Allah for forgiveness. With gunfire in the background, he says in a trembling voice: “Forgive me mother, I did not take this path except to help people.”
This attack, among the deadliest against humanitarian personnel in Gaza since the war began on October 7, 2023, has sparked global outrage. Over 408 aid workers, including more than 280 from UNRWA, have been killed in Israel’s ongoing bombardment. Humanitarian organizations, including the UN, have called for an independent and transparent investigation into what many view as a systematic campaign against medical and rescue services.
The Hamas resistance movement called the footage “irrefutable evidence” of a premeditated war crime. Meanwhile, Volker Turk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, emphasized the need for international accountability and described the act as a possible “war crime.”
As international calls for justice grow louder, this incident underscores the extreme vulnerability of humanitarian workers in conflict zones and the moral imperative for global powers to hold violators accountable.
