The IDF will open an "in-depth investigation" after a video on social media showed an IDF tank nearly shelling a soldier who appears to be standing in the line of fire, the army said in a statement Tuesday.
"The incident seen in the video is serious and completely deviates from the IDF's safety instructions," the statement says. "There will be an in-depth investigation, and penalties will be imposed. There were no casualties in the incident."
The three-second video, which circulated on Israeli social media on Monday, appears to show a clear violation of army protocol.
A disaster narrowly avoided
The female soldier is seen standing close to the cannon rather than remaining outside a safety radius, and she is not wearing a bulletproof vest. The incident could have resulted in disaster.
The incident comes after 20 IDF soldiers have been killed in friendly fire incidents since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7.