Three senior army officers will be reprimanded and one of them transferred from his present post for improper handling of the evacuation of some 6000 Bedouins from the Raffah area in the Gaza Strip, it was disclosed here today. The incident was part of a larger issue involving criticism by Mapam, a coalition partner, of the creation of Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip.
Chief of Staff David Elazar said he had accepted the recommendations of a committee named to investigate complaints against army officers in the evacuation of the Bedouins, which also involved security considerations and the demolition of Bedouin houses.
The committee also recommended that another Israeli, who was not named, a civilian employe of the Military Governor’s office, face a disciplinary court on the same charges. He was accused of not carrying out the evacuations in accordance with a plan, the details of which were not disclosed. The committee said there was no evidence to support charges, reported last week, that Israeli officers urged the Bedouins to complain to the International Red Cross about the evacuation measures.
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