IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir summoned Colonel (Res.) Yoav Yarom for a meeting on Sunday in light of the incident in which Sergeant Gur Kehati and Major (res.) Ze’ev Hanoch (Jabo) Erlich fell in battle in Lebanon last year.
The meeting was held after the criminal case against Yarom was closed following a decision by the Military Advocate General.
During the meeting, the operational debriefing on the incident was presented to the Chief of Staff, who ordered severe command measures against Yarom. Under the decision, he will receive a severe command reprimand, be dismissed from reserve service, and end his service in the IDF.
Zamir emphasized that the incident was caused by a severe operational failure, which led to tragic consequences, and noted that Yarom's conduct included severe planning flaws ahead of and during the operation. In addition, Yarom failed by bringing a civilian into a combat zone without the proper authorization or operational planning.
In addition, the IDF chief of staff noted that some of the shortcomings identified during the investigation point to cultural and operational gaps within the IDF that must be addressed systematically.