Yair Lapid to Biden Admin: ‘No One Will Dictate Our Rules of Engagement’

Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday forcefully rejected the U.S.’ call for Israel to change its rules of engagement after the death of Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh during a firefight between the IDF and Palestinian terrorists, saying “no one would dictate” Israel’s open fire policy.

State Department Deputy Spokesman Vedant Patel on Wednesday said the U.S. would “continue to press our Israeli partners to closely review its policies and practices on rules of engagement and consider additional steps to mitigate the risk of civilian harm, protect journalists and prevent similar tragedies in the future.”

Lapid later expressed sorrow over Abu Akleh’s death, describing it a “tragedy that occurred amid heavy enemy fire.”

“The IDF never intentionally shoots at innocent people. We are deeply committed to freedom of the press and to some of the most stringent rules of engagement in the world,” he said at a naval graduation ceremony.

“But to be clear – I will not allow an IDF soldier that was protecting himself from terrorist fire to be prosecuted just to receive applause from abroad. No one will dictate our rules of engagement to us, when we are the ones fighting for our lives.

“Our soldiers have the full backing of the government of Israel and the people of Israel,” Lapid said.

The IDF on Monday released a report concluding that there was a “high probability,” but it was not “unequivocal,” that Abu Akleh was “accidentally” killed by gunfire from Israeli troops during a firefight with Palestinian terrorists.

The report underlined the “wild and indiscriminate gunfire” and bombs that were thrown by members of the Islamic Jihad terror group. The IDF operation came amid a terror wave that saw 19 Israelis killed.

The IDF said the investigation included extensive interviews with the soldiers on the ground as well as forensic and ballistic analyses. The probe also took into account information published by foreign media organizations, including video footage and audio files.

“The death of Abu Akleh is a devastating incident,” IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi said at the time.

“The IDF operates in immensely complex areas at a professional and high-quality level every night, while taking actions to avoid harming non-combatants. The IDF takes great efforts to this end, while working to allow press coverage and the freedom of the press.”