Line of Confusion: "Afraid to Use Weapons for Defense" | Israel today

While the instructions to open fire in the territories of Judea and Samaria are clear and detailed, within the boundaries of the Green Line the fighters are left with plenty of room for interpretation and are exposed to MPI investigations • "There is no definition of who the enemy is and how to neutralize him

• Soldiers in training.

  Those photographed have nothing to do with the news

  Photo: 

  Oren Cohen

Fighters in infantry battalions and elite units have long complained that the instructions to open fire and the messages they receive from their commanders are confusing, leading to the fact that in a real event they often do not know how to act.

This came to the fore further following the incident of the theft of weapons from the Commando Brigade fighter.

Although the IDF investigation determined that there was no value flaw in its operations, fighters note that the writing was on the wall, that it was not a one-time event, even if relatively extreme, and a continuing trend leading to a complete loss of deterrence. 

"From the day you enlist, you are given safety instructions and instructions to open fire. Before each guard or patrol, they talk about the instructions and no one really understands when it is possible and when not to open fire. The instructions are confusing and two-way. Every incident leads to investigations. Soldiers are afraid to use their weapons. They are afraid of investigations by the military prosecutor's office and the IDF.

An examination of the instructions for opening fire that reached Israel Today shows that it is indeed easy to get confused and act in the wrong way, even in a life-threatening situation.

Moreover, there is a huge difference between the individual instructions intended for the territories of Judea and Samaria, which include cases and reactions to many events, and those written for military activity within the Green Line areas that are subject to interpretation and hence - confusion on the part of the soldiers.

With regard to the arrest of a firearm thief, the instructions in the line state that "every effort should be made to capture the thief while avoiding the use of force or using reasonable force that does not involve the use of a weapon."

It was also written that "opening fire will be done as a last resort, after other means have not worked."

Shooting can only be carried out if "overt acts are committed that express an intention to attack immediately and dangerously with a firearm or thorny weapon."

"The feeling is that the soldier has to wait until the last minute and only then shoot," says P., a fighter in infantry training.

"We are told that we need means, intent and ability, but look at the case of the commando fighter - there were not these - and they still endangered the soldier," C. accepted, adding that "there is no clear definition of who the enemy is and how to act against him."

The chairman of the Military Theory Organization, Capt. (Res.) Itai Asman, said that "it is not possible for the commanders in the field to be bound by the PTSD guidelines written in light of the fluorescent, which restrict freedom of action and castrate deterrence."

The IDF Spokesman responded: "The opening fire regulations are adapted to the operational needs.

"In the event that a soldier is attacked and is in danger of death, he may act by all means, including live shooting, in order to neutralize the danger."