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Friday, April 5, 2024
IDF: Efrat Katz was likely killed by IAF helicopter fire during abduction by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleEmanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
An IDF probe has determined that Efrat Katz, 68, was likely killed by Israeli Air Force helicopter fire while Hamas terrorists kidnapped the Kibbutz Nir Oz resident on October 7.
The findings of the probe were presented to Katz’s family today.
According to the investigation, amid battles that took place in southern Israel on October 7, an IAF helicopter opened fire against a car with several terrorists in it.
It was later revealed, based on eyewitnesses and surveillance camera footage, that the vehicle also had Israeli hostages in it.
“As a result of the shooting, most of the terrorists in the vehicle were killed, and apparently the late Efrat Katz,” the IDF says.
The IDF says the probe found that the military’s surveillance systems could not distinguish Israeli hostages from Hamas terrorists while in moving vehicles, and therefore the shooting was “defined as shooting at a vehicle with terrorists.”
The chief of the IAF, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, says that he “did not find fault in the operation by the helicopter crew, who operated in compliance with the orders in a complex reality of war.”
Katz’s body was later recovered, and she was buried on October 25 in Kibbutz Revadim.
The Times of Israel Community.