{{Short description|Killing of mentally disabled Palestinian man by Israeli forces}} {{pp-extended|small=yes}} {{Infobox civilian attack | title = Killing of Mohammad Bhar | location = [[Shuja'iyya]], [[Gaza City]], [[Gaza Strip]] | date = {{start date|2024|07|03|df=y}} | partof = the [[Gaza war]] | image = Mohammad Bhar portrait.png | caption = Photo of Mohammad Bhar in his room | map = | map_size = | map_alt = | map_caption = | native_name = | native_name_lang = | coordinates = {{coord|31|30|02|N|34|28|12|E|region:GS|display=inline}} | time = | timezone = | target = | type = [[Dog attack]] | weapons = | fatalities = 1 | injuries = | perpetrators = [[Israeli Ground Forces]] | victim = Mohammad Bhar, aged 24 }}
'''Mohammad Bhar''' ({{langx|ar|محمد بهار}}; 2000 – July 2024) was a 24-year-old [[Palestinian]] man with [[Down syndrome]] and [[autism]] who died after being [[dog attack|mauled]] by an Israeli [[Oketz Unit|Oketz]] [[Dogs in warfare|military dog]] in a [[Gaza Strip]] house during the [[Gaza war]].
Bhar, who had Down syndrome, autism, and speech difficulties, was unable to move without assistance from his family. According to his family, they had been displaced at least six times since the Gaza war erupted in late 2023. They stated that the [[Israel Defense Forces]] (IDF) raided the house where they were besieged on 3 July 2024; the forces included a combat dog which mauled Bhar's arm and chest. Israeli forces then separated Bhar from them, giving assurances that he would be treated by a military doctor, and later forced them to leave the house.
When the family returned to the house a week later, they found Bhar's bloodied, decaying body on the floor and a [[tourniquet]] on his arm. [[Israel]] later confirmed that the soldiers left Bhar in the apartment, saying they departed to help other injured soldiers.
Mohammad's killing provoked outrage on social media websites, and his family demanded an investigation into the incident. The [[BBC]], which reported on the incident, was criticized for obscuring the Israeli military's role.
==Background== Mohammad Bhar was a [[Palestinian]] born in the [[Gaza Strip]] in 2000. He had [[Down syndrome]] and [[autism]] and was bullied in school.<ref name="BBC1"/> According to his family, Bhar liked to dance, play sports, and eat [[mulukhiyah]], which is a popular dish in [[Palestinian cuisine]].<ref name="TN1"/> He was also deeply attached to his mother, Nabila, a widow who had lost her husband after he was killed by the [[Israel Defense Forces]] (IDF) during a raid in eastern [[Gaza City]] in 2002.<ref name="TN1">{{cite web|url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2024/07/17/gazan-man-with-down-syndrome-found-dead-after-israeli-police-dog-attack/|title=Gazan man with Down syndrome found dead after Israeli military dog attack|accessdate=17 July 2024|date=17 July 2024|work=The National|archive-date=17 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240717080158/https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2024/07/17/gazan-man-with-down-syndrome-found-dead-after-israeli-police-dog-attack/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="TNA1" />
By 2023, Bhar was unable to move without assistance from his family members and spent most of the time sitting in his armchair.<ref name="BBC1"/> His mother told ''[[Middle East Eye]]'' (''MEE'') that Bhar was obese.<ref name="MEE1" /> She told the [[BBC]] that: "He didn't know how to eat, drink, or change his clothes. I'm the one who changed his [[nappies]]. I'm the one who fed him. He didn't know how to do anything by himself".<ref name="BBC1">{{cite web |last=Keane |first=Fergal |date=19 July 2024 |orig-date=16 July 2024 |title=Gaza man with Down's syndrome attacked by IDF dog and left to die, mother tells BBC |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9drj14e0lo |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240728212838/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9drj14e0lo |archive-date=2024-07-28 |accessdate=29 July 2024 |work=BBC News}}</ref><ref name="TI1"/>
==Killing== Since the start of the [[Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip]] of the [[Gaza war]], Bhar's family said they had been displaced at least six times<ref name="MEE1" /> and had to [[Evacuations during the Gaza war|evacuate]] 15 times, escaping from [[Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip|Israeli bombing]] of the Gaza Strip.<ref name="BBC1"/> On 27 June the fighting returned to [[Shuja'iyya]], during the [[Second Battle of Shuja'iyya|second battle of Shuja'iyya]], and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) ordered residents to evacuate. By then, the Bhar family were weary from moving. In July 2024, the Bhar family was hiding at one of their relatives' house in the Shuja'iyya neighborhood of Gaza City, where the Israeli military was in pursuit of [[Hamas]] militants.<ref name="BBC1"/> The Bhar family said they were under siege for seven days as Israeli forces surrounded the house, and that Mohammad panicked at the sounds of shells and fighter jets surrounding them.<ref name="BBC1"/><ref name="AJA1">{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/news/2024/7/17/%D9%86%D9%87%D8%B4-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%84%D8%A8-%D8%B0%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B9%D9%87-%D8%AD%D9%8A%D8%A7-%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D9%81%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%B7%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A|title="نهش الكلب ذراعه حيا".. عائلة شاب فلسطيني مصاب بمتلازمة داون تروي كيف قتله جنود الاحتلال (فيديو)|language=Arabic|work=Al Jazeera|date=17 July 2024|accessdate=17 July 2024|archive-date=18 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718082425/https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/news/2024/7/17/%D9%86%D9%87%D8%B4-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%84%D8%A8-%D8%B0%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B9%D9%87-%D8%AD%D9%8A%D8%A7-%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D9%81%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%B7%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A|url-status=live}}</ref>
On 3 July 2024, the family said an Israeli military unit raided their house on Nazaz Street. The unit consisted of several dozen soldiers and a [[Dogs in warfare|combat dog]] used to check for explosives, [[booby trap]]s, and to find Hamas fighters.<ref name="BBC1"/><ref name="TI1">{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-gaza-war-palestinians-dog-attack-b2581144.html|title=Gaza man with Down's syndrome mauled by Israeli attack dog and left to die, family says|work=The Independent|date=17 July 2024|accessdate=17 July 2024|archive-date=18 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718082535/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-gaza-war-palestinians-dog-attack-b2581144.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The dog, which was sent into the house first, began attacking Bhar.<ref name="MEE1" /> Bhar's mother Nabila recalled that the Israeli forces smashed everything in the house when they broke in. When the soldiers arrived in their room, she told them: "He's disabled, disabled. Have mercy on him, he's disabled. Keep the dog away from him".<ref name="BBC1"/><ref name="roya1"/><ref name="AJA1"/>
His mother also recalled how the dog then proceeded to attack Mohammad, biting his chest and hand, leaving him bleeding. She said that Mohammad, who had speech difficulties,<ref name="TN1"/><ref name="AJA1"/> was screaming at the dog, saying: "''wala'', ''wala'' [hey you]", and at other times: "''khalas'', ''ya habibi''" [enough, my dear]".<ref name="MEE1">{{cite web|url=https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/gaza-palestinian-down-syndrome-left-die-israeli-soldiers-after-combat-dog-attack|work=Middle East Eye|date=16 July 2024|accessdate=17 July 2024|title=Gaza: Palestinian with Down syndrome 'left to die' by Israeli soldiers after combat dog attack|archive-date=18 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718082427/https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/gaza-palestinian-down-syndrome-left-die-israeli-soldiers-after-combat-dog-attack|url-status=live}}</ref> The BBC reported that he was patting the dog's head.<ref name="TNA1" /> The mother said that Israeli soldiers then took Bhar to another room away from the dog, while pointing their guns at the rest of the family and telling them that a [[military doctor]] would soon arrive. The soldiers tried to treat his wounds, and a military doctor came later. After several hours, Israeli soldiers ordered the Bhar family to leave at gunpoint, and arrested two of Mohammad's brothers, who were not released by 17 July 2024, according to the family. The rest of the family said they sought shelter at a damaged building nearby.<ref name="BBC1"/><ref name="roya1">{{cite web|url=https://en.royanews.tv/news/52732|title="I can't stop thinking of his screams": The "Israeli" killing of man with Down Syndrome|work=Ro'ya|date=17 July 2024|accessdate=17 July 2024|archive-date=17 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240717141014/https://en.royanews.tv/news/52732|url-status=live}}</ref>
The Bhar family tried to contact the [[Palestine Red Crescent Society]] (PRCS) to ask for their assistance, but were informed that the Israeli authorities were not cooperating with their requests.<ref name="TI1"/> The family said they later returned to the house a week later and found Mohammad's bloodied body lying on the floor and beginning to decay, with worms starting to eat his face.<ref name="BBC1"/><ref name="MEE1"/> His brother showed the BBC a cellphone video of the scene. A [[tourniquet]] was on Bhar's arm, and there was [[gauze]] that was used to [[Bandage|dress]] a wound. His brother also said that Bhar had been left by Israeli forces without stitching his wounds or providing any additional care. The BBC reported that it was unclear which of Bhar's injuries was the cause of death.<ref name="BBC1"/> Mohammad was buried in an alley near the house, as it was too dangerous to transport his body to a graveyard or to the [[Morgue|mortuary]], according to the family.<ref name="BBC1"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dostor.org/4761122|work=Dostor|language=Arabic|date=17 July 2024|access-date=17 July 2024|title=«سيبني يا حبيبي خلص".. قصة فلسطيني من متلازمة داون نهشته كلاب الاحتلال|archive-date=18 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718082434/https://www.dostor.org/4761122|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Aftermath== Mohammad Bhar's killing provoked outrage on [[social media]] websites,<ref name="TI1"/> and his family demanded an investigation into his killing.<ref name="BBC1"/> The Israeli military said in response to a BBC query that the troops left Bhar in the house alone because there were soldiers injured in a rocket attack somewhere else that needed their help. The military said that the soldiers left Bhar after giving him [[first aid]].<ref name="BBC1"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Al Taher |first1=Nada |title=Israeli military admits abandoning injured Palestinian found dead days later |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2024/07/19/israeli-military-admits-abandoning-injured-palestinian-found-dead-days-later/ |website=The National |access-date=24 July 2024}}</ref> His mother Nabila, who was 70 years old at the time of the killing, told the BBC that:<blockquote>"This scene I will never forget [...] I constantly see the dog tearing at him and his hand, and the blood pouring from his hand [...] It is always in front of my eyes, never leaving me for a moment. We couldn't save him, neither from them nor from the dog."<ref name="BBC1" /></blockquote>A similar incident was reported a month prior to Mohammad's killing: [[Al Jazeera Media Network|Al Jazeera]] posted footage from a camera attached to a dog accompanying Israeli forces, that showed it dragging and biting an elderly Palestinian woman in her home.<ref name="MEE1"/>
The BBC's report was criticized by activists who considered the original headline ("Gaza man with Down's syndrome dies lonely death") to be obscuring the Israeli military's responsibility in the incident; the headline was later changed to "Gaza man with Down's syndrome attacked by IDF dog and left to die, mother tells BBC".<ref name="AB1">{{cite web|url=https://www.albawaba.com/node/bbc-changes-headline-gazan-boy-downs-1577526|title=BBC changes headline of Gazan boy with Down's syndrome after criticism|work=Al Bawaba|accessdate=17 July 2024|date=17 July 2024|archive-date=17 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240717072405/https://www.albawaba.com/node/bbc-changes-headline-gazan-boy-downs-1577526|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="TNA1" /> ''[[The New Arab]]'' reported that the attack was not mentioned until the article's 16th paragraph, nearly halfway through the article.<ref name="TNA1">{{cite web|url=https://www.newarab.com/news/shameful-bbc-story-israels-killing-disabled-man-revised|title=Activists decry BBC coverage of Israel's killing of Palestinian man with Down's syndrome in Gaza|work=The New Arab|date=17 July 2024|accessdate=17 July 2024|archive-date=17 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240717165700/https://www.newarab.com/news/shameful-bbc-story-israels-killing-disabled-man-revised|url-status=live}}</ref>
According to [[Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor|Euro Med Human Rights Monitor]], the Israeli military has used dogs to attack civilians at least 146 times in the Gaza war.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kelly |first=Annie |last2=Elsobky |first2=Mahmoud |last3=Levitt |first3=Tom |date=2025-06-12 |title=Attack dogs: how Europe supplies Israel with brutal canine weapons |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jun/12/weapons-war-israel-europe-dogs-joint-investigation |access-date=2026-04-28 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
A Dutch ship in the September 2025 [[Global Sumud Flotilla]] was named for Bhar.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-09-18 |title=Dutch government won't label Gaza war as genocide after UN report |url=https://nltimes.nl/2025/09/18/dutch-government-wont-label-gaza-war-genocide-un-report |access-date=2026-04-28 |website=NL Times |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Student on Gaza flotilla: ‘There is nothing more to spare’ |url=https://advalvas.vu.nl/en/student-society/student-on-gaza-flotilla-there-is-nothing-more-to-spare/ |access-date=2026-04-28 |website=Ad Valvas |language=en-US}}</ref>
== See also == {{Portal|Israel|Palestine|Crime|Politics }} * [[Israeli war crimes in the Gaza war]] * [[Gaza genocide]] * [[Killing of Hind Rajab]] {{Clear}}
== References == {{reflist|30em}}
{{Gaza genocide}} {{Gaza war}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhar, Mohammad}} [[Category:1990s births]] [[Category:2024 deaths]] [[Category:2024 in the Gaza Strip]] [[Category:Civilians killed in the Gaza war]] [[Category:Death in the Gaza Strip]] [[Category:Deaths by person in Palestine]] [[Category:Gaza City in the Gaza war]] [[Category:Shuja'iyya]] [[Category:Violence against disabled people]]