Military expert Brigadier General Fayez Dowairy attributes the rise in Israeli military deaths from friendly fire—during its ongoing assault on Gaza—to soldiers’ fear and poor training, as well as the formidable resistance they face on the ground.
According to the Israeli army’s data, one in every five fatalities is due to friendly fire, and 17% were killed in this manner or through incidents in the field.
Dowairy stated that mistakes occur in all battles but the catastrophic numbers suggest a level of fear among these soldiers, a decline in their urban warfare training, poor battle management, and also highlights the efficacy of the opposing Palestinian resistance forces in managing the confrontation and imposing their will.
To underscore the fear gripping Israeli soldiers in battle, Dowairy pointed to an incident where a soldier killed a comrade yesterday, and another panicked from sleep, grabbed his weapon and fired at the walls. Additionally, there were instances of killing three prisoners who were waving white flags and spoke Hebrew.
Furthermore, Dowairy added, the “scandals” attributed to the resistance on October 7 have later been found to be the work of the Israeli army itself, including the deaths of hundreds at a musical concert near the Gaza Strip.
Forensic analysis confirmed that the dissection of a soldier’s body, found in one of the tunnels, proved he was killed by toxic Israeli bombs, according to Dowairy.
Dowairy believes part of these outcomes is due to Israel’s application of the “Hannibal protocol” during operations in Gaza, which revolves around killing the prisoners—an action evident when a house in Gaza was bombed to kill elements from the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and their accompanying prisoners.
