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Source: https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-truth-about-naza-or-collateral-damage/
The Filmmakers Mistook the IDF's System for Limiting Civilian Casualties for Something Darker
(Times of Israel) Lt.-Col. (res.) Sarit Zehavi - I was one of the founders of the unit within the IDF that deals with warning populations on the other side of enemy lines and preserving civilian lives. We built the processes that define how to issue evacuation warnings, and how to track evacuations. I was personally involved in formulating target approval processes and operational discussions. If the creators of the recent documentary, "NAZA" (a Hebrew military acronym for collateral damage), had spoken with me, I would have explained that the chart shown at the beginning of the film's promotional material is not a "killing chart," but rather a planning chart for a target identified as being used by Hamas. Its purpose is to determine whether to strike at all, who in the command echelon is authorized to approve the strike, with what munitions, and under what conditions. Noting the collateral damage on the target sheet does not signify an intention to kill civilians or commit genocide; it is intended, first and foremost, to prevent civilian deaths. There are hundreds of soldiers and officers in the IDF whose sole role is protecting civilians in enemy territory. That is what they think about from the moment they wake up in the morning. The IDF has invested massive resources - intelligence personnel, legal experts, operational personnel from the air and ground forces, and technological experts - to develop command and control systems designed to accurately assess where civilians are present and where they are not. From my experience, I can testify that a whole world of intelligence stands behind this effort. In the Intelligence Directorate, there are several desks whose exclusive role is tracking the percentage of the population that has evacuated from areas after the IDF has issued warnings. If a high percentage of the population has evacuated, the collateral damage assessment drops, and only then is a strike on the terror infrastructure permitted. The difference between us and our enemies is enormous. Hamas and Hizbullah have a radical Islamic ideology and publicly declare and demonstrate that their goal is to kill Israeli civilians. By contrast, we state clearly that we have no intention of killing civilians in enemy territory. This is how we educate our children - civilians are not a target. The writer, who served for 15 years in the Israel Defense Forces, specializing in military intelligence, is founder and CEO of the Alma Research and Education Center, specializing in security challenges on Israel's northern border.