Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir suggested that the Israeli military should shoot Palestinian children in Gaza who approach the so-called “yellow line,” referring to the line Israeli troops withdrew to when the ceasefire went into effect.
According to Israeli media, he made the comments during a recent security cabinet meeting. A military official who attended the meeting said that the IDF’s policy is to shoot any adults who cross the line and arrest a “child with a donkey.”
In response, Ben Gvir said, “Why not shoot a child with a donkey?” Israel’s Channel 4 reported that he also urged the Israeli military to “shoot children and donkeys too,” saying that Israel must “stop being merciful.”
Another Israeli official in the meeting then asked, “Who should be shot first—the child or the donkey?” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz concluded the conversation by saying, “Anyone who approaches the fence should know that they may be harmed.”
Throughout its genocidal war in Gaza, the Israeli military has created kill zones by setting arbitrary lines that Palestinians on the ground are not aware of. An Israeli soldier recently detailed killing Palestinians, including children, who crossed one of the lines the IDF set in northern Gaza, where people were waiting for aid.
The IDF has marked the yellow line by placing large concrete blocks 200 meters apart from each other, but when the ceasefire went into effect, it wasn’t marked at all, and the IDF killed dozens of Palestinians it claimed crossed the invisible boundary. In one incident, the IDF bombed a vehicle that allegedly crossed the line, killing 11 people, including seven young children.
