OMM Newsroom
A British citizen who served in the Israeli military was photographed posing in front of a burning school in Gaza, prompting calls for an investigation into possible war crimes, according to an investigation by Declassified UK.
A film published by the outlet on “YouTube” identified the man as Jonathan Burman. He reportedly attended school in Manchester, spent a gap year in Israel and later joined the Israeli army.
The Israeli military confirmed to Declassified UK that Burman served in the 55th Brigade, an elite reserve paratrooper unit. The investigation said he posted the photograph to a private “Instagram” account, and that the image appeared to show him in Gaza’s Khan Younis area, with extensive destruction behind him.
Airwars, a transparency watchdog, traced the school to Bani Suheila, east of Khan Younis, and identified it as Madrasa al-Farabi. Israeli soldiers attacked the school on Dec. 12, 2023, the investigation said.
Airwars found that an Israeli military statement about an operation targeting an alleged terrorist cell referred to a different school about two kilometres away.
The film also cited research by the Hind Rajab Foundation, which identified a military company Burman likely served with and linked it to close combat and the destruction of residential buildings in Khan Younis.
Yuval Green, a former medic in the brigade’s 66th Battalion, told Declassified UK that some soldiers were motivated by extreme religious beliefs and saw the war as an opportunity to kill Palestinians and displace them.
Chris Sidoti, a member of the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, said the evidence warranted further investigation, while stressing it did not establish Burman’s guilt. He called on London’s Metropolitan Police to investigate.
Burman did not respond to requests for comment, Declassified UK said.
An estimated 2,000 British-Israeli dual nationals are believed to have served in the Israeli military during its war on Gaza, the outlet reported.
In April, London’s Metropolitan Police said it would not investigate 10 British nationals accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, citing no realistic prospect of conviction and difficulties in conducting an effective investigation.
The decision followed a dossier submitted to the force’s war crimes unit by Palestinian rights groups.
