Human Rights Watch : Israeli military has repeatedly attacked medical workers and healthcare facilities in Lebanon

Human Rights Watch said in a document it issued on Wednesday that the Israeli army has repeatedly attacked medical personnel and health facilities in Lebanon, stressing that "Israeli attacks on paramedics are clear war crimes." The international non-governmental organization concerned with defending human rights documented in a report it published three attacks that constitute war crimes, stating that the Israeli army bombed medical crews, transportation, and facilities during these attacks, including paramedics at a civil defense center near downtown Beirut on October 3, and an ambulance and hospital in southern Lebanon on October 4, which led to the deaths of 14 paramedics.

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The Israeli government has accused Hezbollah of using ambulances to transport fighters and hospitals to hide weapons and equipment. Human Rights Watch did not find any evidence indicating use of these three facilities for military purposes at the time of the attacks that would justify depriving them of their protected status under international humanitarian law.

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Membership or affiliation with Hezbollah, or other political movements with armed wings, is not a sufficient basis for determining an individual to be a lawful military target. Guidance by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sets out that people who have exclusively non-combat functions in armed groups, including political or administrative roles, or are merely members of or affiliated with political entities that have an armed component, such as Hezbollah, may not be targeted at any time unless and only for such time as they, like any other civilian, directly participate in the hostilities. Medical personnel affiliated with Hezbollah, including those assigned to civil defense organizations, are protected under the laws of war.