IDF contractor accidentally killed in tragic ‘friendly fire’ incident in central Gaza

Yaakov “Kobi” Avitan, an employee of a contracting company carrying out engineering work for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on behalf of the Ministry of Defense, was accidentally killed in the central Gaza Strip, the IDF announced Tuesday evening. 

According to an initial investigation, Avitan was killed as a result of an accidental misidentification by IDF soldiers in the Netzarim Corridor. The IDF Spokesperson's Office stated that the incident is under investigation by the Southern Command. 

Avitan, who operated an excavator to clear rubble in the Netzarim Corridor, apparently showed up for work wearing civilian clothes, and was misidentified by soldiers as a suspect attempting to cross the corridor in an unauthorized location. 

A soldier working to guard the IDF post opened fire on Avitan, killing him. 

Avitan, a resident of the southern port city of Eilat had volunteered with the Yedidim organization and the ZAKA organization in Eilat. 

Nati Twito, the director of the Yedidim organization in Eilat, said on Tuesday evening, "It is hard for me to speak about him in the past tense. Kobi was a model family man, a volunteer with his heart and soul. Wherever help was needed, he would go, even at the expense of his livelihood. Always with a smile, always happy, always going above and beyond. My heart refuses to believe this.” 

The ZAKA organization also released a statement about Avitan, saying, "Kobi volunteered with the Chesed Shel Emet [Hebrew for Grace of Truth] unit at the ZAKA branch in Eilat. He was a man of kindness who dedicated his life to the public and gave his soul for the people of Israel. As part of his volunteer work at ZAKA, Kobi was involved in every event, even in the most difficult and complex scenes.” 

Civilian contractor deaths during the Gaza War have been rare, with Avitan being only the second contractor to be killed in Gaza since the start of the war. In May, another contractor, Liron Yitzhak, was killed by a mortar attack on IDF troops with whom he was working in Rafah. 

Since Monday morning, after resolving a breech in the ceasefire agreement, when Hamas refused to release the civilian Arbel Yehud, and to hand over a list of the remaining hostages stating their condition, tens of thousands of Gaza residents have returned to the northern Gaza Strip through the Netzarim Corridor.

The IDF issued several warnings through its Arab Spokesman, Colonel Avichay Aadraee, to avoid approaching IDF soldiers in the corridor. 

The IDF also announced on Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning that it had fired warning shots after several suspects approached troop locations outside of the authorized travel zone. 

In central Gaza, an IDF drone struck near a vehicle attempting to move northward through a prohibited area in order to avoid inspection.

In southern Gaza, troops fired warning shots toward suspects who were approaching their position in a threatening manner. After the suspects continued to approach despite the warning shots, the soldiers fired on the suspects, hitting several of them.