Parents of medic killed by Israel says his death is 'crime against humanity'

The parents of a Palestinian medic executed by Israeli forces in Gaza have denounced his killing as a "crime against humanity".

Rifaat Radwan, a 23-year-old Palestinian Red Crescent Society paramedic, was among 15 medical workers killed after their vehicles were pulled over by Israeli forces.

According to the UN and Palestinian sources, the Israelis shot the men “one by one” and then buried them in a mass grave.

Speaking to Middle East Eye, his mother said she was devastated by the loss of her son as well as by the footage that emerged after their bodies' discovery, which disproved Israeli claims that their vehicles had been "advancing suspiciously" without warning lights on.

"What happened to Rifaat and his colleagues is something horrific, beyond comprehension," said his mother.

"We’re trying to adapt and process the video we saw."

She added that considering his job and the brutality of Israel's 18-month assault on the Gaza Strip, she feared he would not survive.

"The Red Crescent emblem on Rifaat, we hoped it would protect him. I never washed Rifaat’s uniform so the emblem wouldn’t fade," she said.

"I expected Rifaat to be martyred but not in such an unjust way."

Medical workers targeted

According to the Palestinian health ministry at least 1,391 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza since the collapse of a ceasefire last month.

The overall death toll since the start of the war is now at least 50,752, while virtually the entire population of the enclave has been displaced since October 2023. At least 10,000 more Palestinians are missing and presumed dead.

Health workers have faced particularly heavy losses, as they have attempted to cope with few resources and the destruction of hospitals by Israel.

'What happened to Rifaat and his colleagues is something horrific, beyond comprehension'

- Mother of Rifaat Radwan

Israeli forces have reportedly killed at least 105 members of the civil defence search-and-rescue organisation, 27 Red Crescent paramedics, 284 UN staff and nearly 1,400 health ministry workers since October 2023.

The father of Rifaat Radwan described his son as "calm, ambitious, educated".

"Towards the end, Rifaat was the one running the household - I’m a sick person, I have no strength," he explained.

"He would earn a small amount and spend it on the house."

He recalled that when Rifaat was a child, he would find him running along the road chasing after ambulances.

After completing his studies, he told his family he was going to work in the emergency services, a calling his father attributed to that early fascination with ambulances.

"That alone is enough to sum up Rifaat’s journey in life. And here, he left us a plant. He planted basil and flowers," said his father.

"He loved life. Emotional and compassionate at the same time."