Probe of Golani misfire death reveals multiple faults
Military inquest into accidental death of Golani Sergeant Or Hadad reveals series of failures, including lapsing weapon inspections. Military Prosecution expected to file manslaughter charges against soldier who misfired
The inquest into the death of Golani Sergeant Or Hadad reveled that D., the solider suspected of accidentally shooting him, misfired while demonstrating proper fire techniques to a third soldier, Ynet learned Wednesday.
Twenty-year-old Hadad suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the back at a military base in the Golan Heights some two weeks ago.
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According to the inquest, both the company commander and its staff sergeant were not present on the day of the incident, leaving the squad commander in charge. The latter granted some of the soldiers' request to skip the routine weapons check, since some of them did not have a chance to clean their rifles.
The squad commander began inspecting D's gear and once he was finished, two soldiers – one of whom was Hadad – approached him. Hadad apparently commented on a piece of D's equipment before walking away. At this time, D. began demonstrating the proper way to fire his rifle – a standard issue Tavor assault rifle – to the third soldier.
It is believed that D. had Hadad in his sights, acknowledged that to the third soldier and pulled the trigger, thinking that since the rifle had no magazine in it, it had been properly discharged.
Hadad, standing some 22 yards away, suffered a fatal shot to the back.
'Weapon maintenance protocol lacking'
According to the information gathered by the military, the last time D. properly discharged his weapon was three weeks prior to the event. He did not take part in many of the squad's routine activities and so the monitoring of his rifle protocol fell short.
"This is a tragedy that cost us a soldier's life for no reason. It was caused by the delinquency of one solider, and it could have been prevented had several control points been observed by the commanding officers over time," said Battalion 51 Commander Lt.-Col. Shuki Ribak, who headed the inquest.
Ribak found the squad commander's dealings with D. "lacking," admonishing him for failing to properly file D's performance reports. Ribak did not exempt himself from responsibility, noting in his report that both he and the company commander failed to hold periodic meetings meant to monitor soldiers' progress.
The inquest further revealed lapses in the squad's weapons maintenance protocol, and overall noted 11 operational mistakes connected to the case.
The gravest two, classified as "negligence," are attributed to D. for deactivating the grip-safety and aiming a firearm at another soldier.
Lt.-Col. Ribak concluded that while "general discipline levels in the squad and the entire company have been found lacking and in need of improvement… This is not a case in which the commanding officers were negligent."
The IDF Spokesman's Unit offered the following statement: "This was a grave event, followed by an immediate inquest. The results of the investigation have been presented to officers and soldiers throughout the brigade. The lessons learned form this case have been assimilated and weapons protocol reemphasized."
The GOC Northern Command Court remanded D. pending the conclusion of the legal proceedings against him. The Military Prosecution is expected to charge him with manslaughter.
It is unclear at this time whether any disciplinary action will be taken against any of the commanding officers involved.
