Nearly 20 months after Golani Brigade soldier Sergeant Gur Kehati was killed in a fortress in southern Lebanon, the IDF presented his family with the findings of the inquiry into the incident.
The findings were delivered only after the family warned that it would petition the Supreme Court if it did not receive them by July 10th.
Kehati's grandfather, Assaf Agmon, described the family's feelings after reading the document: "Our worst nightmare has turned out to be true." According to Agmon, the majority of the inquiry document deals with the war and the Golani Brigade's activities, while only a small section is dedicated to the circumstances of the incident in which his grandson fell.
Sergeant Kehati fell on November 20th, 2024, in an incident in which civilian scholar of the Land of Israel Ze'ev (Jabo) Erlich was killed. According to the family, the inquiry found that there was no operational necessity to include Erlich in the operation and that Colonel (Res.) Yoav Yarom did so without authorization or authority.
Agmon voiced harsh criticism of the manner in which the findings were presented and the lack of accountability by the commanders. "When you read the inquiry, you understand the gravity of the crime, the failure, and the shame," he said, adding that even though the family was told that Yarom acted without permission, "We did not hear a word about accountability."
According to the grandfather, the family hoped to hear a clear admission of the command's failure and responsibility, but was disappointed. "To say 'I'm sorry' and 'Gur was a hero' is total baloney. If we had a bit of hope that someone would take accountability and understand the gravity of the severe moral failure, it just didn't happen."
Kahati's parents appealed to the IDF Chief of Staff three months ago, demanding to receive the investigation's findings. In their letter, they wrote that for months, they had received no professional, ethical, or humane response regarding their son's death, describing the handling of the case as a “disgrace" and demanding that the information be provided immediately.