“We operate a sub-army of slaves.”
That is how a former Israeli soldier described the systematic use of Palestinian civilians as human shields by Israeli forces in Gaza, in a harrowing anonymous op-ed published by Haaretz.
According to the soldier, who served nine months in Gaza, Israeli troops are using human shields “at least six times a day” under an informal practice known as the “mosquito protocol.”
Palestinians—often elderly men or young boys—are forced to enter homes and tunnels ahead of soldiers to check for traps or fighters.
“Almost every platoon keeps a ‘shawish,’” he wrote, using the term for these forced human scouts.
The author said the practice has become normalized across the Israeli military, with commanders openly endorsing it. Though safer alternatives like drones or dogs had been used earlier, the military prioritized speed over protection:
“We forced Palestinians to act as human shields not because it was safer for IDF troops, but because it was faster.”
Despite mounting evidence and internal awareness, military authorities have only opened six investigations—an effort the soldier calls a “cover-up.”
“This procedure is a crime—even the army now admits that. It happens daily and is much more common than the public is being told.”
We forced Gazans to act as human shields not because it was safer for us, but because it was faster. That’s why we risked the lives of Gazans who were suspected of nothing other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time / An anonymous senior officer