A Gaza rescue team went missing a week ago in southern Rafah’s Tal as-Sultan district.
Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) members and international agency staff who finally made it to the scene said they found the body of the mission leader, Anwar Abdel Hamid al-Attar, “in dismembered pieces”.
Destroyed ambulances and fire engines were buried and “their features obliterated”, Al Jazeera reported.
“Our teams found torn safety equipment worn by the crew at the crime scene. This suggests the Israeli occupation forces directly targeted the crew during their incursion, then deliberately altered the area’s features and concealed the bodies of some civilians using bulldozers and heavy machinery,” the Red Crescent said in a statement.
Thirteen other medics and civil defense agency workers remain missing.
“The PRCS expresses deep concern for the safety of its teams and holds Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible for their fate,” the Red Crescent said.
The Israeli attacks have killed at least 921 people and wounded 2,054 others in Gaza since the Zionist regime broke the ceasefire with Hamas on March 18.
Israel has also bombed Beirut for the first time since a ceasefire was agreed in November with Hezbollah.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians face severe hunger and malnutrition in Gaza as Israel’s total blockade continues for more than three weeks, the UN has warned.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says at least 50,277 Palestinians are confirmed dead and 114,095 wounded in Israel’s war on Gaza since October 2023. Gaza’s Government Media Office also updated its death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of Palestinians missing under the rubble are presumed dead.