Israel Rejects U.S. Call for Review of IDF Rules of Engagement in West Bank

(Axios) Barak Ravid - Israel on Wednesday rejected the U.S. call for it to review the Israel Defense Forces' rules of engagement in the West Bank in the wake of the killing of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh on May 11, 2022, during a heated exchange of fire with Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists in Jenin. On Sep. 5, a senior IDF officer said that the final investigation concluded that Abu Akleh was most likely killed in "unintentional fire" from an Israeli soldier who did not realize she was a journalist. The officer said the investigation found no violation of the rules of engagement. Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid expressed "sorrow" over Abu Akleh's death on Wednesday, but said "no one will dictate our rules of engagement to us, when we are the ones fighting for our lives." Another senior Israeli official said, "Nobody is going to change the rules of engagement because of U.S. political pressure....The Biden administration is not really pressing us because they understand we are not going to change the rules of engagement."


2022-09-12 00:00:00

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