(WatchDogReport.org) – The Israeli armed forces fired two of its officers on April 4 after determining that the strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen members should have never occurred.
In a statement, the armed forces said that the Israeli Joint Chiefs of Staff conducted a probe where it found that the officers mistakenly thought that the aid vehicle transporting the workers had members of the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. The armed forces added that the incident was preventable as World Central Kitchen previously sent numerous memos to the Israeli military indicating their movements in the area.
The statement also detailed that the preliminary findings concluded that the strike on the convoy was the consequence of numerous mistakes in “decision-making” and a direct attack that goes against the standing procedures of the Israeli military. According to some reports, the probe was formally presented to international ambassadors, World Central Kitchen members, journalists, and the Israeli Armed Forces Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi.
Since the military operation against Hamas started, numerous NGOs and journalists have claimed that the Israeli military has killed numerous civilians. While the Israeli government has dismissed many of these claims as Hamas propaganda, it has also recognized some of them, explaining that these were the consequence of errors and promising to take measures against those responsible.
The military officers who were dismissed were a brigade chief of staff and a brigade fire support commander. Halevi said in a press conference that their actions will be investigated, adding that the armed forces also “reprimanded” a Southern Command commander, a 162nd Division commander, and a brigade commander.
In a separate statement, World Central Kitchen said that the Israeli armed forces have taken significant actions for taking responsibility for the killing of some of its members and taking severe disciplinary actions against the responsible. However, the nonprofit organization also criticized the Israeli military for deploying deadly force without caring about its protocols or even its rules of engagement.
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