A DENTIST in Gaza has revealed how Israeli intelligence called him out of the blue – giving him a two-hour window to escape before they dropped bombs on three towers.
He asked them to fire a warning shot to prove that it was not a hoax before he helped hundreds of neighbours evacuate to a safe distance.
Throughout the conflict the IDF has sometimes called Gazans to tell them to flee
MAHMOUD SHAHEENMahmoud Shaheen had to evacuate hundreds in his neighbourhood[/caption]
BBCIsrael bombed three towers in the early hours of the morning[/caption]
The dentist, Mahmoud Shaheen, was in al-Zahra, a middle class area of the Gaza strip that had hardly been touched by airstrikes, when the call came.
Mahmoud told the BBC that the call was from a private number, from a man who spoke fluent Arabic and claimed to be Israeli intelligence.
The dentist revealed: “He told me he wanted to bomb three towers… and ordered me to evacuate the surrounding area.
“I had the lives of people in my hands.”
Mahmoud asked the Israeli intelligence officer to fire a warning shot to prove that the call wasn’t a hoax.
After one rang out, Mahmoud said: “I asked him to ‘shoot another warning shot before you bomb’”.
After gathering his thoughts, he begged the Israeli intelligence officer to stay on the phone as he ran around the neighbourhood leading a mass evacuation.
Mahmoud said: “I told him: ‘Don’t betray us and bomb while people are still evacuating.’”
He said that he did everything he could to keep his community safe.
According to Mahmoud, the Israeli intelligence officer said that he would give him some time, and that he didn’t want anybody to die.
Mahmoud responded by stating that he didn’t want anybody to be injured, let alone die.
He said: “I didn’t want to know that there’s someone I could have saved and I didn’t.
“I tried my best to stop him. I asked, ‘Why do you want to bomb?’
“He said, ‘There are some things that we see that you don’t see. It is an order from people bigger than me and you, and we have an order to bomb,’”
The Israeli man informed Mahmoud that the bombing would begin when the areas around the buildings were clear.
Hundreds of people fled from their urban apartments in this, usually serene, city. The streets were filled with the sounds of screams and many residents ran around wearing only their pyjamas.
Soon after the evacuation was completed, a large Israeli aircraft circled overhead.
One of the three towers that neighboured Mahmoud’s was soon bombed.
Mahmoud said that the man told him: “This is the tower that we want, stay away.”
Then, two other tower blocks were reduced to rubble.
After the conclusion of the attack, Mahmoud recalls the man saying: “We’ve finished… you can go back.”
Mahmoud said: “I told him al-Zahra is a civilian area. No one is a stranger here… I tried to make him understand.
“It is not a border area, we have not had previous clashes. It was always an area outside of trouble.”
Those who still had homes returned, while others searched for shelter.
Peace, and a false sense of security, lasted for a few hours – before Mahmoud was called again.
This time, the man on the other end attempted to explain the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
Mahmoud revealed: “He started telling me: ‘Did you see how they [Hamas] slaughtered those children with knives?’…
“I told him that according to our Islamic religion, this is forbidden,”
The dentist said he attempted to sway the man away from “mass punishment”, but knew that his attempts were futile.
He was told he needed to order his neighbourhood to evacuate the two tower blocks that were next to the three that been destroyed earlier that day, and two other blocks nearby.
Mahmoud said: “We evacuated all the people and even evacuated a third block because it was so close to the second one.”
But, no sooner than he had done this, came a change of plans.
Mahmoud recalled being informed that a full row of apartment blocks were to be bombed – more than 20 tower blocks, making up hundreds of homes.
He said: “There were people we hadn’t evacuated yet because there was no warning about those buildings.
“I told him, ‘At least give us until morning, in night time, where will the people go?’”
“The answer was, ‘The orders have been received, and we will bomb all towers within two hours.’”
After begging for more time, Mahmoud remembers: “He even told me, ‘Take your time. I won’t bomb unless you give me permission.’
“I said ‘No, it’s not my permission. I don’t want you to bomb anything.
“If you want me to evacuate, I will evacuate for the safety of the people, but if you want to bomb, don’t tell me you need my permission.
“‘It’s not Mahmoud Shaheen who will bomb al-Zahra.’”
Throughout the conflict the Israeli military has sometimes called Gazans to warn them of oncoming airstrikes.
The IDF has said that in its: “mission to dismantle the Hamas terrorist organisation [it] has been targeting military targets across the Gaza Strip”.
This comes after the news that the IDF has killed Hamas’ weapons chief in a jet strike.
Mohsen Abu Zina is the latest of the organisation’s senior commanders to have been killed by Israel.
Abu Zina was central to Hamas’ weapon development – specialising in the production of strategic ammunition and rockets for militants to wield in their campaign of terror.
Overnight, the IDF said the terror chief was eliminated after one of its fighter jets blasted Hamas’ production headquarters.
Israel has also claimed to have Yahya Sinwar, dubbed “Gaza’s Bin Laden” surrounded in a bunker as they have been closing in on Gaza City.
Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant said Hamas’s leader in Gaza was “hiding in his bunker…without contact with his associates”.
He did not disclose the exact location.
Israel has killed a number of Hamas’ leading members since the conflict ramped up on October 7 – including its missile chief, its central Gaza commander and one leader of their security forces.
The last month has seen relentless bombardment in Gaza, and has killed more than 10,3000 according to the U.N.
QUTAIBA KOLTHOUMResidents of al-Zahra had to evacuate and seek refuge in parks[/caption]
BBCA second wave of airstrikes came just hours later[/caption]
Not known, clear with picture deskBefore and after photos of the carnage caused in al-Zahra[/caption]
QUTAIBA KOLTHOUMHundreds of homes were destroyed and many are now homeless[/caption]
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