Israeli soldiers indicted on charges of theft during Gaza war

Jerusalem: Three Israeli soldiers were on Sunday indicted over charges of theft in the ground incursion in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip during the 50-day war last year that killed over 2,000 people.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) prosecution filed its first indictments against soldiers relating to the Gaza War in a case related to the theft of USD 605 allegedly from a house in the Shejaiya neighbourhood of the coastal strip where the soldiers were temporarily located during the fighting.

Two of the soldiers were indicted for theft and obstruction of justice during the investigation, while a third soldier was indicted for aiding and abetting the theft, the Jerusalem Post reported.

The IDF in March released its third report on the status of over 120 investigations into allegations of war crimes by the Israeli army during the Gaza war.

With these three indictments, a total of 19 criminal investigations have been ordered so far.

The decision of the Palestinian Authority (PA) to go to the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israel has put the ongoing army investigations under severe international scrutiny.

The ICC prosecutor is said to have opened a preliminary examination to review several issues, including whether Israel's investigations of its own soldiers are sufficient.

Its conclusions could determine the extent of its involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.