IDF shares drone footage alleging Hamas uses children as shields
World
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared drone footage it says shows a Hamas fighter walking with a child carrying a rifle in Gaza.
The IDF claims this shows Hamas uses children as human shields to avoid Israeli airstrikes, and released the video to call out these tactics.
IDF condemns child exploitation, Hamas denies
The IDF strongly condemned what it called Hamas's "systematic exploitation of children" and accused it of putting military sites near schools to deter attacks.
On the other side, Hamas denied the accusations and argued that Gaza's crowded neighborhoods make separation impossible, saying Israel is responsible for protecting civilians.
The back-and-forth highlights just how tense and complicated things remain between the two sides.