Gantz: We won’t ease West Bank rules of engagement
IDF chief says giving soldiers more leeway to use arms could lead to dangerous escalation
Brushing aside criticism from some soldiers, settlers and politicians on the right, who say the army imposes undue constraints on soldiers’ right to open fire, IDF Chief of Staff Gantz on Tuesday said existing strict instructions limiting the use of live fire by troops in the West Bank would remain in place.
“We won’t ease the rules of engagement,” he said at a meeting of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. “If we let go of the reins, there will be an escalation and we’ll lose control.”
If anything, soldiers might need additional instruction on how to comply with these rules, Gantz said.
The committee’s chairman, former foreign minister Avigdor Liberman, indicated his displeasure with the IDF’s norms, saying he was “given to understand that the current instructions coming down to the troops in the field was that in any case that a conflict arises, it is best to flee.”
No soldier would want to find himself the subject of a military police investigation, Liberman added.
Two weeks ago the Maariv daily reported on IDF soldiers who complained of their hands being tied in dealing with Palestinian protesters in the West Bank. As a result of the report, legislators and settler leaders called on the army to allow troops more discretion in the use of their firearms.
Soldiers quoted in the article said the regulations hindered them in effectively confronting rioters, while fear of legal prosecution stopped commanders from making hard choices. Instead of tackling the problems the army seeks to escape them, many of them said.
Former Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin (Likud) said at the committee meeting that images of soldiers “being attacked and retreating in the face of rioters” should force the army to rethink the orders given to troops in the field. “The current situation can’t go on,” he said.
“The entire world and the citizens of Israel are exposed to pictures of IDF soldiers helplessly standing in front of provocations and attacks by Palestinian rioters, and the IDF must provide them with the tools to deal with these situations,” Rivlin told Gantz.