TEL AVIV — Former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) combatant and civil rights advocate Nadav Weiman has issued a scathing critique of military rules of engagement and accountability in the occupied Palestinian territories, asserting that operational procedures prioritize force over civilian safety.
Speaking in media interviews and public addresses in his capacity as Executive Director of Breaking the Silence—an organization of Israeli veteran soldiers documenting military actions—Weiman highlighted what he described as a systemic breakdown in military discipline and investigation protocol.
“The IDF shoots, kills, and then thinks—and then tries to find a reason for why it happened,” Weiman stated.
Weiman, who served as a sniper and reconnaissance soldier in the IDF’s Nahal Brigade, argued that military operational norms often grant low-level commanders broad leeway to open fire without immediate threat assessment. He noted that internal inquiries frequently serve to retroactively construct justifications—such as labeling casualties as combatants or suspects—rather than conducting impartial investigations into civilian deaths.
His comments come amid heightened global scrutiny over Israeli military conduct in Gaza and the West Bank, where human rights groups and international bodies have repeatedly questioned official casualty reports and the lack of independent oversight following lethal operations.