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IDF commits to opening probe after every W. Bank civilian death

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Military Advocate-General Maj.-Gen. Avichai Mandelblit announced yesterday that the Military Police would open criminal investigations into the deaths of allegedly innocent Palestinians. Under the new policy, a criminal investigation will be opened immediately after an innocent Palestinian is killed by the IDF, except in those cases involving an exchange of fire. For this reason, the new policy does not extend to Gaza. Mandelblit’s decision to change the policy is a result of the alleviation of terrorism in the West Bank, where there are currently no IDF combat operations, unlike in the Gaza strip where exchanges of fire between the IDF and Hamas remain frequent. Recently in the West Bank, however, Palestinian deaths involving the IDF have been rare. Mandelblit has reserved the right to reverse the decision if hostilities escalate in the West Bank. The policy was welcomed by B’Tselem, The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.

The new policy is part of the IDF’s efforts to demonstrate to the world that it can be trusted to investigate itself. Its ability to do so was a central Israeli claim refuting the Goldstone Report, which was recently reinforced by the Davis Committee, set up to evaluate Israeli investigations following Operation Cast Lead. The Davis Committee concluded that Israel was responsibly investigating allegations of misconduct, albeit somewhat slowly.