The soldier suspected of shooting his friend claimed in the reconstruction: I carried out the instructions to open fire in full

According to sources, the suspected fighter who accidentally shot and killed Sergeant Natan Fitosi cooperated fully during the reconstruction, saying that he felt his life was in danger, and that Fitosi did not stop even after shooting into the air. In the Nachshon Battalion, there is criticism of the command, among other things from the parents of the fighters. Severe criticism from The defense on the investigation

Amir Bohbot

08/18/2022

Thursday, August 18, 2022, 07:30 Updated: 07:37

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On video: IDF activity in the Tulkarm sector after the bilateral shooting incident (documentation on Arab social networks)

Last night (Wednesday) there was a reconstruction of the fire incident, during which a soldier of the Nachshon Battalion from the Kafir Brigade, Sgt. Natan Fitousi, was killed by his friend's fire. The suspected fighter repeated to the MDF investigators what happened step by step, and this after 13 hours of investigation by the MDF. According to sources According to the details of the reconstruction, the suspected fighter cooperated fully despite his fatigue and repeatedly repeated the claim that he carried out the instructions to open fire in full, after he felt a tangible danger to his life. He called Pitosi to stop, and he did not stop even after firing into the air.

The suspected fighter was asked if he was asleep while on guard , and he vehemently denied this. According to him, he was alert throughout the entire shift. Tonight, the military defense attorneys submitted a request not to summon him for further questioning tomorrow since he is "emotionally broken", and for 48 consecutive hours he gave evidence as part of the operational investigation and the Ministry of Defense investigation.

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The late Sergeant Natan Fitousi, who was killed by fire from our forces (photo: IDF spokesman)

Within the Nachshon Battalion, there is criticism of the battalion's senior command, regarding problems in the organization before going into operational employment, problems with briefings and preparations for the mission.

"The briefing and refinement of the procedures after the incident are the best evidence of the gap that existed before the incident," said the parents of fighters, who criticize the command in the brigade.

The response of the IDF spokesman has not yet been given.

The military defense, which represents the suspect, said tonight, following what it called "inaccurate publications in the media": "Since the tragic incident occurred, in which our client accidentally shot his good friend Natan Fitousi, he is in severe emotional and mental distress. In the two days that have passed, he participated in the investigation all night The incident was investigated for many hours at the Ministry of Defense and a nighttime reconstruction was conducted with the investigators.

Our client is cooperating with his investigation even though he barely sleeps.

The burden placed on the shoulders of this young warrior is enormous.

We understand the great importance of a thorough and true investigation of the terrible event and the importance of an exhaustive investigation of its circumstances, but it is also not possible to accept such a long investigation under such difficult conditions in relation to a short and specific incident."

More in Walla!

The defense attorneys of the soldier who shot his friend asked to stop the investigation against him

To the full article

The funeral of Sergeant Natan Pitosi, August 16, 2022 (Photo: Maariv, Avshalom Sashoni)

The defense added that "it seems that the whole purpose of the prolonged investigation is to take advantage of the young soldier's difficult situation and hope that he will fail to speak and change his version, according to which he acted in accordance with the orders he received and in accordance with the circumstances that existed at the time. The soldier answered all the questions asked by his interrogators and there is no longer any point in endless repetition about the same questions when he is in a difficult state of mind, exhausted and grieving."

She called for "immediately stopping the continuation of the investigation and allowing the soldier mental treatment and rest, as well as a visit to the family home of his late best friend."

The defense's statement also stated that "a situation in which inaccurate information is leaked from a confidential military investigation harms the confidentiality of the operational investigation, harms the IDF's ability to learn from investigators in the future, and harms the soldiers' trust in the investigative institution.

We call on the media and the public on social networks to wait for the end of the investigation and to exercise the necessary restraint in these tragic circumstances."

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