Regiment commander in charge of Nahal Oz dismissed
IDF chief of staff decides to fire commander from his position due to his inability to terminate Islamic Jihad attack which left two Israelis dead
IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Gabi Ashkenazi
decided Monday that the commander of the ninth Armor Corps regiment will be dismissed from his position, due to his failure in commanding troops during the terror attack at the fuel terminal in Nahal Oz,
in which two Israeli citizens - Lev Charniak and Oleg Lipson - were killed.
Praise for Soldiers
Hanan Greenberg
Probe to focus on how Gaza terrorists managed to infiltrate Israel in broad daylight without being detected. Southern Command: Soldiers' quick response prevented large-scale attack
Ashkenazi's decision was based on a recommendation he received from Southern Command chief Major-General Yoav Galant.
He remarked that the regiment commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Yair Baranes, did not finalize the attack in the manner expected of a commander of his rank.
During the attack, four gunmen crossed the border fence from Gaza and fired small-arms at the employees working at the terminal. IDF forces were dispatched to the scene and pursued the terrorists who, by that time, had already crossed the fence back into Gaza.
The pursuit included tank fire, and two gunmen were killed while the other two escaped. IDF sources assumed that the terrorists planned to kidnap Israeli citizens or soldiers.
In addition to the attack, a barrage of rockets was fired at the area. Palestinian sources reported that most of the terrorists who carried out the attack managed to escape into Gaza.
Following the attack, many accusations were launched at the security forces in the area.
IDF sources claimed that the company operating the fuel terminal, Dor Alon, refused to place security guards at the terminal for economic reasons, but Dor Alon denied the accusation and claimed that since the terminal is a military facility it should be the army's responsibility to guard it.
Nahal Oz fuel terminal
Photo: Tsafrir Abayov
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