Capt. Yishai Rosales
IDF chief fires commanders over deadly training accident
75th Battalion commander, deputy commander and deputy company commander, along with three junior officers, were dismissed from the military after mortar shell fired in the wrong direction killed Capt. Yishai Rosales.
IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot on Wednesday dismissed the 75th Battalion commander Lt.-Col. Tal David, the deputy battalion commander and the deputy company commander who were found responsible for a training accident at the Tze'elim base that claimed the life of Capt. Yishai Rosales earlier this month.
In addition, the Armored Corps Training Center Commander, Col. Shimon Edri, received a note in his personal file, the company commander was rebuked, and three junior commanders were also dismissed.
An investigative committee headed by Col. Ofir Levy concluded that it was the lack of professionalism of the mortar team that fired the deadly projectile that caused the accident.
The mortar shell fired during training landed 1,450 meters away from where it was supposed to land, and shrapnel from it hit Capt. Rosales, who was participating in a nearby training exercise.
Capt. Yishai Rosales
The IDF chief determined that it was a combination of the commanders' negligence and a serious professional failure that caused the accident.
The IDF's criminal investigation division (CID) is still investigating the incident, and the Military Advocate General might decide to file indictments against the officers and soldiers involved.
Last week, the Military Police questioned the battalion commander under caution. The lieutenant colonel is suspected of negligence.
He was confronted with alleged errors made in the planning and execution of the exercise, primarily that despite the fact the exercise was not approved by the relevant authorities, live fire was used. Another claim being investigated was that the exercise's plan was based on an outdated format, which stopped being relevant after 2012.
The Rosales family - parents Aharon and Elisheva and their five children - made aliyah from Mexico in 2001, lived in Tel Tzion and moved to Beit Meir a year ago. Yishai, who was seen as a leader in the family, spent two years in a yeshiva and then joined the ultra-Orthodox Netzah Yehuda Battalion.
