Israeli soldiers stealing weapons under guise of war: Report

JERUSALEM

An Israeli broadcaster reported Wednesday that there has been a disturbing increase in soldiers stealing weapons.

The KAN channel, affiliated with the Israeli Broadcasting Authority, said there has been “a troubling increase in the phenomenon of weapons and ammunition theft in the Israeli army under the guise of war amid fears that they may also reach armed groups in the West Bank.”

The channel quoted Roi Sharon, the military correspondent for the channel, as saying “there is actually concern in the Israeli army about soldiers or even civilians stealing high-explosive hand grenades and anti-tank missiles from inside the Gaza Strip or areas where forces are stationed outside it and transferring them to criminal organizations, and from there to terrorist organizations.”

Sharon said that although each grenade and anti-tank missile has a serial number, in war, there is a lot of chaos, and continuous supply operations of weapons where the grenades and missiles are used are not counted.

“This facilitates the process of soldiers stealing grenades and anti-tank missiles and taking them home either as souvenirs or for sale to criminal organizations,” he said.

“This week, a Palestinian from East Jerusalem was arrested while he was in northern Israel and in possession of a Matador anti-tank missile, which the army uses extensively in the Gaza Strip.”

Also, last month, 15 hand grenades were used by criminals within 10 days, which are not old grenades but modern versions used by the army,” he added.

In light of fears of these weapons reaching from inside the Green Line (1948 territories) to the West Bank, the Israeli army intends to tighten inspection operations at crossings and checkpoints.

On Tuesday, Israeli media outlets revealed that the Israeli Border Police found three high-explosive hand grenades stolen from the army in the possession of Israeli criminals in the city of Or Akiva near Haifa.

In recent years, the Israeli army has disclosed several incidents of weapons and ammunition theft carried out by soldiers from within military bases.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala