Role of Israeli army in deaths of Israelis on Oct 7 back in spotlight

ANKARA (AA) – The commander of an Israeli search and rescue team stoked controversy last month while discussing the army’s role in the October 7 attack by Hamas, saying that Israeli civilians were killed when Israeli army tanks fired at houses to reclaim the agricultural community of Kibbutz Kfar Aza near the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian group.

Anadolu has obtained footage of Lt. Col. Golan Vach’s statement on October 14 to members of the foreign press in the kibbutz, where clashes occurred between the army and Hamas.

Vach is seen giving a briefing in front of a house that appeared to have suffered heavy damage in the clashes.

He said 19 people died at the scene, noting that two women and two men were found handcuffed in front of the house while 15 people, including eight infants, were discovered dead inside the home.

“This destruction is due to the attack by our tanks. Since these houses were seized by Hamas, we had to reclaim the entire settlement. It wouldn’t have been possible without tanks,” he said.

– No investigation –

Asked by a reporter on October 23 whether an investigation was being conducted into possible civilian casualties caused by the Israeli army tank fire, Israeli army spokesman Richard Hecht said none was being carried out.

“We are currently focused on the war,” he said.

Speaking to Israel’s N12 television, a female Israeli soldier said that when they forcibly entered the Holit Kibbutz, she refused to obey the commander’s order to shoot.

“He pointed at me and told me to ‘Shoot there. There are terrorists.’ I asked him whether there were civilians. ‘I do not know, just shoot,’ he told me. I decided not to because that was a kibbutz in which Israelis lived. I instead fired with my machine gun towards the house.”

It was reported that many Israeli civilians lost their lives as a result of the approximately 17-hour-long attack by tanks.

On November 19, Israeli media reported that a 12-year-old girl named Liel Hetzroni was killed in the October 7 clashes between the army and Hamas in Kibbutz Be’eri.

– ‘Why are they shooting?’ –

Yasmin Porat, who was being held in the house by Hamas along with Liel and others, said in an interview with Israeli state broadcaster KAN’s Haboker Hazeh radio program that the military fired heavily at the house even though there were civilians inside alongside Hamas members.

“I wondered why they were firing at the house with a tank. I asked those around me, ‘Why are they shooting?’ They told me, ‘It’s to help clear the house (from Hamas) by firing to break down the walls,'” she said.

Porat said that until two big explosions occurred, Liel was alive, and everyone else in the house had died after the explosions, including Liel.

“If you ask me, I estimate, based on what happened in other houses, she apparently burned completely,” she said.

– Helicopter targeted people indiscriminately, says Haaretz –

On November 19, Haaretz provided information on an assessment made by senior Israeli security officials concerning the October 7 attack carried out by Hamas.

According to the assessment, based on interrogation records of Hamas members and a police investigation, Hamas likely lacked advance knowledge of a music festival being held near the Gaza Strip.

The report said that according to the police investigation, many festival attendees managed to escape because a decision was made to halt the event half an hour before the first gunshot was heard.

“According to a police source, the investigation also indicates that an Israeli military helicopter, which arrived at the scene and apparently fired at terrorists present there, also struck some festival participants. According to the police, 364 people were killed at the festival.”

– Yedioth Ahronoth also exposes role of helicopter –

Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper also reported on the moments when Israeli Air Force helicopters intervened in the attack launched by Hamas on October 7.

“Hamas ‘terrorists’ received instructions to gradually blend into the crowd and remain motionless at all costs. In doing so, they attempted to deceive the air forces into believing that those below were Israelis,” the report said.

“This deception worked for a while until Apache helicopters had to break free from all restrictions. When pilots realized the difficulty of distinguishing between terrorists and Israelis, some decided independently… to use ammunition against the terrorists without obtaining permission from their superiors,” it added.

– Censorship of news –

The Israeli police on November 19 warned national media outlets that had reported on Israeli civilians killed by Israeli military helicopters.

“Especially during this period, we urge the media to demonstrate responsibility in their reporting and to base their news solely on official sources,” they said in a statement.