An Israeli soldier between banners showing pictures of victims of the Hamas attack on Kibbutz Ra'im on the outskirts of the Gaza Strip on October 7 (Getty)
Commenting on a statement by the Israeli army in which it acknowledged the killing of an Israeli woman by friendly army fire in an attack last October 7 on settlements around the Gaza Strip, Emaniel Fabian, correspondent for the Times of Israel newspaper, said that many facts will be revealed later and will be contrary to the Israeli version of the events of the attack.
An Israeli army investigation concluded that Israeli citizen Efrat Katz (68 years old) was most likely killed by Israeli Air Force helicopter fire while militants of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) detained a resident of Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7.
Fabian said, "There are a group of observations and gaps in the army's statement that confirm that there is a lot that the Israeli army's statement has not said yet, and many of the facts will later reflect the Israeli narrative of the events of October 7, and that this statement is just the beginning."
The military correspondent called to confirm whether this was the first official Israeli acknowledgment of the killing of Israeli citizens by friendly fire during the events of October 7, noting that the army’s statement denied its prior knowledge of the presence of Israeli kidnappers inside the Hamas car, but after an investigation that lasted about 6 months, it became clear to the army today. Through cameras and eyewitnesses, this citizen was inside this car that was bombed and she and most of the Hamas fighters inside were killed.
The reporter confirmed that the Israeli army report reinforced suspicions that there was more than one Israeli hostage and not just one hostage inside the Hamas car, as the statement says that the investigation found that the military surveillance systems were unable to distinguish between the Israeli hostages and Hamas fighters.
Growing doubts
Fabian said that doubts increased when the army statement spoke of targeting more than one vehicle under the same circumstances with the possibility of Israeli hostages being inside it, as the statement stated that “military surveillance systems were unable to distinguish between Israeli hostages and Hamas fighters while the vehicles were moving,” which means talking about More than one vehicle, not just one vehicle.
The reporter noted that the army statement's reference to the following phrase, "Military surveillance systems were unable to distinguish between Israeli hostages and Hamas fighters," left the door open that there were other Israeli citizens killed by army fire.
According to the journalist, the army did not specify the date on which Katz’s body was recovered and identified, as the statement said that “Katz’s body was recovered at a later time,” that is, days after October 7, but without specifying a specific date for its recovery and identification.
But the statement specified the date of her burial by saying, “She was buried on October 25 in Kibbutz Revadim,” and thus the question arises here: “Why did the army statement not reveal the date the body was recovered and identified?”
The reporter recalled the Haaretz newspaper investigation published on November 18, which revealed excerpts from Israeli police investigations that spoke of an Israeli military helicopter shooting at a number of participants in a party organized near Kibbutz Re’im in the border of the Gaza Strip on October 7. The past, but the police denied this report at the time.
Source: The Times of Israel