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Decisions of the IDF Military Advocate General Regarding Exceptional Incidents During the 2014 Gaza War

(Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson) The IDF Military Advocate General (MAG) has reached decisions concerning several exceptional incidents that occurred during Operation Protective Edge (7 July-26 August 2014). Allegations Concerning the Death of Four Children on the Gaza Strip Coast (16 July 2014): Four children were killed on a beach adjacent to Gaza port. The MAG ordered the opening of a criminal investigation into the incident. Video footage documenting the attack in real time was reviewed. The incident took place in an area that had long been known as a compound belonging to Hamas' Naval Police and Naval Force (commandos), and which was utilized exclusively by militants. The compound is closed off by a fence and clearly separated from the beach serving the civilian population. Affidavits provided by Palestinian witnesses stated that the compound was known to the local residents as a compound which was used exclusively by Hamas' Naval Police. The IDF carried out a number of attacks on the compound in the days prior to the incident. On the day prior to the incident, a container inside the compound used to store military supplies was attacked. The attack was aimed at figures who were understood to be militants from Hamas' Naval Forces, who had gathered in order to prepare military activities against the IDF. Under the circumstances in question, it would not have been possible to have identified these figures, via aerial surveillance, as children. It became clear after the fact that the identification of the figures as militants was in error. Nonetheless, the tragic outcome of the incident does not affect the legality of the attack. Allegations Concerning the Death of 15 Individuals During an Attack on the Al-Salam Building in Gaza City (21 July 2014): The IDF conducted an aerial attack on Sha'aban Dachdouch, a senior commander in the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, who was present in an office in the Al-Salam building. The attack was carried out in the late evening in light of the assessment, premised upon timely intelligence, that there would not be civilians present at that time in the building, which was known to be an office building. The munition was selected to limit the damage to that part of the building where the target was located in order to minimize, to the extent feasible, the collateral damage. Regrettably, after the fact, there was an unforeseen collapse in the upper floors of the building approximately half an hour after the attack. Allegations Concerning the Death of 9 Individuals as the Result of an Attack on a Cafe on the Khan Yunis Coast (9 July 2014): The IDF investigation found the existence of grounds for a reasonable suspicion that the attack was not carried out in accordance with the rules and procedures applicable to IDF forces. As a result, the MAG has ordered the opening of a criminal investigation into the incident.
2015-06-12 00:00:00
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