According to a New York Times report cited by Reuters, the Israeli military relaxed its rules of engagement at the beginning of the Gaza offensive to allow commanders to approve attacks on targets despite a higher chance of civilian casualties.
According to the journal, the military gave mid-ranking officers the power to assault a variety of military objectives where up to 20 civilians could be killed right after groups of Hamas-led gunmen attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.
According to the NYT, the military eliminated a cap on the total number of people its strikes may endanger each day, in addition to increasing the amount of civilian casualties that could be risked in a single operation.
According to the publication, the military high command occasionally authorized strikes that they knew would endanger up to 100 civilian lives.
According to the newspaper, the directive allowed the military to target rank-and-file terrorists when they were at home with family and neighbors rather than just when they were by themselves.
While acknowledging that the rules of engagement had altered after October 7, the military claimed that its soldiers had “continually been employing means and methods that adhere to the rules of law,” according to the NYT. A request for comment from Reuters was not immediately answered by the Israeli military.