The Israeli military said on Friday that it fired two officers and reprimanded three others for their roles in drone strikes in Gaza that killed seven aid workers on a food-delivery mission. It said they had mishandled critical information and violated the army’s rules of engagement.
A retired general’s investigation into the Monday killings found that Israel had admitted its embarrassment, facing accusations from key allies, including the U.S., for not doing enough to protect Gaza’s civilians from its war with Hamas.
The findings are likely to renew doubt over the Israeli military’s decision-making. Palestinians, aid groups and human rights organizations have accused Israeli forces of firing recklessly at civilians throughout the conflict — a charge Israel denies.
The military’s spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, told reporters, “It’s a tragedy. It’s a serious event that we are responsible for and it shouldn’t have happened and we will make sure that it won’t happen again.”
With pressure increasing on Israel to hold itself accountable, Hagari and other officials late Thursday shared with reporters the results of the investigation.
The speed of the investigation and the quick punishment of five senior officers were highly unusual. Investigations into suspected wrongdoing by soldiers and officers are often slow and in most cases end without charges being filed. Human rights activists have long complained that Israeli forces operate in a climate of impunity, an allegation the military rejects.
However, it was unclear whether the punishments and the apology would calm an international outcry over the deaths of the World Central Kitchen workers or reassure international aid groups that it was safe to resume operations in Gaza, where nearly a third of the population is on the brink of starvation.
The food charity called the investigation and disciplinary actions “important steps forward” — but noted the probe itself found that the army didn’t follow its own protocols.
“Without systemic change, there will be more military failures, more apologies and more grieving families,” the statement read, repeating a call for an independent investigation.
According to what spokespeople said were the Israeli army’s rules, targets must be visually identified as threats for multiple reasons before they can be hit. But the investigation determined that a colonel had authorized the series of deadly drone strikes on the convoy based on one major’s observation — from grainy drone-camera footage — that someone in the convoy was armed. That observation turned out to be untrue, military officials said.
The army said the colonel and the major were fired, while three other officers were reprimanded, the most senior of whom was the head of the Southern Command. It said the results of its investigation were turned over to the military’s advocate general, who will decide whether the officers or anyone else involved in the killings should receive further punishment or be prosecuted.
The army admitted that the attack on the aid vehicles was a serious mistake caused by misidentification, errors in decision-making, and a violation of the Standard Operating Procedures, according to a statement released with the findings.
Israel’s closest allies condemned the killings and criticized Israel’s behavior in the nearly 6-month-old war with Hamas.
The victims included three British citizens, a Polish citizen, an Australian, a Canadian American dual citizen, and a Palestinian, all of whom worked for World Central Kitchen, the charity started by celebrity chef José Andrés.
The investigation identified two major areas of wrongdoing.
It blamed officers for not reading messages warning troops that cars, not aid trucks, would transport charity workers away from the distribution warehouse. As a result of this, the cars targeted were mistaken as carrying militants.
The army also criticized a major and a colonel for making decisions without enough information when identifying and approving the strike target.
The army stated that the order was given after a passenger in a car was recognized as a gunman. This was based on suspicion after a gunman had been seen on the roof of one of the delivery trucks on the way to the warehouse.
The army presented footage to reporters showing the gunman firing a weapon while on top of one of the trucks — a video that The Associated Press could not independently verify.
After the aid was delivered to a warehouse, an officer believed he saw a gunman in one of the cars. However, the passenger turned out to not have a weapon — the military suggested he may have just been carrying a bag.
The army stated that they initially targeted one car. As people fled to a second car, it was also targeted. The same occurred when survivors moved to a third car. Army officials claimed that drone operators could not see that the cars were labeled with the words “World Central Kitchen” because it was nighttime.
The army could not specify where the communication about the convoy’s plans had failed.
The army declined to respond to questions about whether similar violations of rules of engagement have occurred during the war, despite repeated accusations by Palestinians, aid workers, and international rights groups of the army recklessly striking civilians.
The investigation was led by Yoav Har-Even, a retired general.
The seven individuals who were killed were distributing food that had been brought into Gaza through a newly established maritime corridor. World Central Kitchen stated that it had coordinated its movements with the military, and that the vehicles were labeled with the organization’s logo.
“It was a direct attack on clearly marked vehicles whose movements were known by” the Israeli military, Andrés said on Wednesday.
According to the U.N., more than 220 humanitarian workers have been killed in the conflict.
“Let’s be very clear. This is tragic, but it is not an anomaly,” Scott Paul, of the humanitarian group Oxfam, said Thursday in a briefing with other relief organizations before the results of Israel’s investigation were released. “The killing of aid workers in Gaza has been systemic.”
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