Photo: IDF spokesperson
On Thursday, the commander of the IDF Central District, Major General Avi Blut, held a meeting with district officers and issued a statement regarding a number of incidents that occurred over the past week in his area of responsibility.
The Major General also visited Judea and Samaria police officers at the scene of an incident where Israeli civilians attacked and set fire to a police vehicle on Wednesday.
In his statement, the commander stressed that these are exceptional and unacceptable incidents that must be dealt with firmly and swiftly. He added that all security forces will continue to act in a coordinated manner to ensure order and security in the region.
From a speech by Major General Avi Bluth:
“We are operating effectively during Ramadan, which is currently peaceful, but we are facing isolated but serious incidents. Unfortunately, the behaviour of our reservists in Dheisha does not reflect the values we stand for. Vandalism and graffiti during an operational mission is unacceptable on our part. It is unacceptable for IDF soldiers to act against orders from their commanders. We are determined to stop this practice – quickly, firmly and clearly.”
The general also strongly criticised the actions of Israeli civilians who set fire to a police car:
“There is no justification for setting fire to a police car. This is crossing a red line, and this case will be treated with the utmost seriousness. This is a huge act of ingratitude. Every day we fight terror, maintain law and order, act with precision, determination and cold blood. All this helps us to remain human – and to defeat terrorism.”
The Central District Commander also confirmed that the IDF will continue to pay special attention to discipline among soldiers and to prevent any form of violation of the law, both by soldiers and civilians.
