The IDF has prepared new rules for soldiers engaged in combat in an area where civilians are present, according to the IDF magazine B'Machaneh. The rules were created following an order from IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi.
Under the new rules, combat commanders will be responsible for creating and marking a path by which local civilians can safely leave the area. Each brigade and division will include a captain in charge of ensuring maximum protection for civilians in the combat zones in which the brigade operates.
The updated rules will be taught in officer training courses beginning in September. Current officers will be called to take part in short training courses in which the new rules will be explained.
Ashkenazi ordered the reassessment of combat norms to improve civilian safety following the counterterror operation Cast Lead, which took place in Gaza in the first weeks of 2009. While the ratio of civilian deaths to terrorist deaths was unusually low compared to those resulting from urban combat elsewhere in the world, a total of almost 300 civilian deaths were confirmed, and the IDF has since launched several investigations in an attempt to reduce civilian casualties in the future.
Among the incidents in which civilians were killed was one in which several Gaza civilians attempted to leave a combat zone, but were mistaken by soldiers for potential terrorists when they failed to heed calls to stop. One soldier opened fire, and two civilian women were killed. The soldier may face charges in the incident.
By putting a specific person in charge of civilian evacuation, the IDF hopes to avoid such incidents in the future.