Two police special anti-terror combat unit (Yamam) officers were seriously injured a week ago Wednesday in a shootout with some of the murderers of Rabbi Raziel Shevach in Jenin. The operation was part of an ongoing effort to round up those terrorists.
On Wednesday afternoon, Israeli Radio’s veteran military correspondent Carmela Menashe tweeted her summary of the incident in Jenin:
“The Yamam officers identified one of the wanted men but avoided opening fire, at which point the terrorist pulled out a gun and wounded both officers.”
In a follow-up tweet, Menashe reported:
“The officers identified the terrorist but did not immediately fire at him because they did not feel he was life threatening.” A security official said, “We do not pull out and shoot immediately, this is our professionalism.”
Good thing it was only the kind of professionalism that needlessly gets Israeli fighters seriously injured, and not, God forbid, the kind of professionalism that kills them.
In August 2015, the Israeli defense establishment issued new rules of engagement compelling soldiers to hold their fire in situations where there is no absolute threat to their lives. In the past, soldiers fired a few warning shots in the air before shooting at a suspected terrorist. The defense establishment’s new policy is dedicated to avoiding situations in which the IDF kills a terrorist.