IDF probe of deadly clash finds Tell settler hike was unauthorized, too few troops responded

An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) investigation into a deadly July 24 clash in the West Bank village of Tell found that a settler hike was unauthorized and officers responded with insufficient manpower. The probe revealed that the hike, which included dozens of settlers and two off-duty soldiers, was not coordinated with the army and would not have been approved due to its route through Areas A and B. During the clash with Palestinians, a security coordinator's gun was stolen and used to fatally shoot Major Yuval Ezra. Another fatality, civil defense squad member Benayahu Mellet, may have been shot by either the Palestinian assailant or Israeli soldiers, a possibility that could not be definitively concluded due to the lack of an autopsy. The IDF acknowledged a "serious failure" in leaving Mellet's body at the scene for an extended period. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir called it a "grave terror attack."