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IDF rules of engagement

Gazans with an earth-mover break through the Israel-Gaza border fence into southern Israel, October 7, 2023. (Mohammed Fayq Abu Mostafa/Reuters)
August 11, 2026, 2:35 am
Israel said to tell US it will keep targeting Oct. 7 terrorists as Gaza disarmament stalls
Trump teases a ‘good response’ to Netanyahu’s rejection of roadmap for disarming Hamas, though none appears; Board of Peace says talks ongoing and plan advancing despite the setback
By Lazar Berman, Jacob Magid, ToI Staff and Agencies
An Israeli soldier takes a photograph with his mobile phone during clashes with Palestinian demonstrators in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, October 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)
May 18, 2026, 3:15 pm
IDF struggles to throttle endless feed of soldiers posting misdeeds on social media
Troops keep recording their own misconduct, including smashing a statue of Jesus in Lebanon, but the army claims progress in curbing posts that fuel international criticism and risk operational security
By Stav Levaton
A picture taken on March 30, 2018 from the southern Israeli kibbutz of Nahal Oz across the border from the Gaza Strip shows tear gas grenades falling during a Palestinian protest, with Israeli soldiers seen below in the foreground. (AFP PHOTO / Jack GUEZ)
May 12, 2026, 2:27 pm
We were there. The Supreme Court did not tie the IDF’s hands on the Gaza border
Two former senior IDF officers: Baseless claims that the Court restricted open-fire rules before the October 7 attacks are merely a pretext to dodge a state commission of inquiry
By Nitsan Alon and Eran Shamir-Borer
Family members grieve over the bodies of four members of a Palestinian family, including two children, killed by Israeli troops in their vehicle, during their funeral in the West Bank town of Tammun on March 15, 2026. (Photo by JAAFAR ASHTIYEH / AFP)
March 16, 2026, 10:47 pm
Palestinians seek answers, justice after West Bank family gunned down by Israeli cops
After Ali Bani Awda was killed with his wife and two kids when returning from a shopping trip, his uncle eschews calls for revenge but demands those behind tragic shooting be held accountable
By Nurit Yohanan
A picture taken from Rafah shows smoke billowing over Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip during Israeli strikes on December 30, 2023, as the war between the Palestinian Hamas terror group and Israel continues. (AFP)
December 26, 2024, 7:03 pm
IDF loosened rules of engagement after Oct. 7, allowing more civilian deaths – NY Times
Officers could endanger up to 20 civilians to kill a low-level fighter in immediate aftermath of Hamas attack, report says, and often hit targets selected partly using AI tools
By ToI Staff
Reservist Aviad Frija in a court hearing at the Beit Lid Military Court on December 26, 2023. (Flash90)
November 28, 2024, 2:46 pm
Reservist charged in mistaken killing of civilian who responded to terror shooting
Aviad Frija hit with softened manslaughter rap for shooting Yuval Castleman; indictment says off-duty soldier kept firing despite calls from colleague and victim to stop
By Emanuel Fabian
Yuval Castleman (Courtesy)
April 10, 2024, 7:13 pm
Investigators find police didn’t tamper with probe of civilian hero’s death
Examination was opened after detectives falsely asserted there was no shrapnel in body of Yuval Castleman, shot dead by off-duty soldier as he responded to a terror attack
By ToI Staff and Jeremy Sharon
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visits a Border Police base in the West Bank, posing with troops in undercover garb on January 18, 2024. (National Security Ministry)
January 19, 2024, 10:39 am
Ben Gvir tells officers to shoot ‘terrorists’ who don’t pose threat, then backtracks
National security minister’s office says original statement was misquote, and he meant to say only ‘armed terrorists,’ amid attempts to ease open fire rules during wartime
By ToI Staff
Outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid addresses IDF cadets graduating from the military's officer's course at Bahad 1 in southern Israel, November 10, 2022. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)
November 10, 2022, 7:32 pm
Lapid warns military may face pressure to employ unlawful use of force
Outgoing PM tells graduating cadets Israel’s laws are crucial to separating it from its enemies, in apparent response to far-right MK Itamar Ben Gvir’s call to ease open-fire rules
By Michael Horovitz
MK Itamar Ben Gvir in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, on January 20, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
March 6, 2022, 11:03 am
Far-right MK pulls gun on alleged Palestinian rock-throwers in West Bank
Itamar Ben Gvir claims he was forced to intervene after IDF soldiers told him they were unable to open fire on Palestinians throwing rocks at cars
By ToI Staff
Barel Hadaria Shmueli, a Border Police officer who was shot dead by a Gaza gunman at the border in August 2021 (Courtesy)
December 27, 2021, 2:25 pm
IDF clears officers of wrongdoing in killing of border guard on Gaza fence
Investigation blames decision to position troops directly against the security wall on ‘a professional error in retrospect,’ says rioters were not expected to be armed
By Judah Ari Gross
Palestinian demonstrators hurls stones at Israeli forces amid tear gas during clashes, as they protest Israeli Jewish settlements, in the Jordan Valley of the West Bank, Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020. (AP/Majdi Mohammed)
December 20, 2021, 9:25 pm
IDF begins allowing troops to shoot at fleeing rock-throwers
Military says soldiers are still directed to first try to make an arrest without using deadly force, but experts raise questions about legality of new guideline
By Judah Ari Gross
IDF and Cypriot National Guard soldiers take part in a joint exercise at the Israeli army's Tzeelim training base in southern Israel on October 25, 2017. (Israel Defense Forces/ File)
November 14, 2021, 10:11 pm
IDF updates open-fire rules, letting soldiers shoot thieves, smugglers
Expanded rules of engagement meant to help military crackdown on gun thefts from military bases, cross-border drug deals
By Judah Ari Gross
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett leads a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on September 5, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
September 5, 2021, 1:40 pm
With criticism rife, Bennett slams ‘politicization’ of border guard’s death
PM says ‘some are trying to use the IDF as a tool to advance cynical political goals,’ following censure of army after shooting of Barel Hadaria Shmueli by Gaza gunman
By ToI Staff and Judah Ari Gross
IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi pays a condolence call on September 5, 2021, to the home of Barel Hadaria Shmueli, a Border Police officer who was shot dead by a Gaza gunman at the border last month (Via Facebook: צועדים בדרך בראל)
September 5, 2021, 10:20 am
IDF chief visits home of slain Border Police officer amid criticism from family
Kohavi meets relatives of Barel Hadaria Shmueli after issuing highly unusual letter calling for public support
By ToI Staff and Judah Ari Gross
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