(Jerusalem) An investigative report released Tuesday by the Israeli army points to “failures and errors” in a rare deadly incident on the border with Egypt that “could and should have been avoided”, according to its chief General Staff Herzi Halevi.
On June 3, an Egyptian policeman, “infiltrated” from Egypt into Israel, killed three soldiers there before being shot, according to the army.
“Mistakes and errors” operational and command were found, said Mr. Halevi in the conclusions of the investigation.
“This is a serious incident that could and should have been avoided. We will draw the necessary conclusions,” he continues.
The report highlights several factors that facilitated the attack, including the fact that the border fence with Egypt presented an opening.
“Among the lessons to be learned and applied immediately, it was decided to close the security passage in the border barrier (and) reduce the duration of the soldiers’ missions”, it is written in particular.
After the incident, the Israeli and Egyptian authorities were quick to reaffirm their cooperation.
“An additional investigation was carried out in collaboration with the Egyptian armed forces due to the strategic and security cooperation between the countries,” the report said, noting that Israeli military officials had visited Cairo.
According to a source close to the case, the assailant is not linked to Islamist organizations but he seems to have become radicalized.
Although his name has not been officially released, Egyptian media have identified him as Mohamad Salah, a 22-year-old conscript.
Egypt is one of the few Arab countries that signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, but many Egyptians do not adhere to this normalization.
The border between the two countries is generally calm, although it is regularly the scene of regular drug smuggling attempts, which in recent years have resulted in exchanges of fire between smugglers and Israeli soldiers stationed along the border.