Itamar fence detected terrorists but IDF was not informed

The perpetrator “or two” climbed over the fence, sending an alert to six civilians who serve on the settlement’s rapid response security team.

By YAAKOV KATZ
Soldiers at Itamar settlement 311 (photo credit: REUTERS/Nir Elias)
Soldiers at Itamar settlement 311
(photo credit: REUTERS/Nir Elias)
The IDF was not informed of an alert that the Itamar security team received after the electronic fence that surrounds the settlement detected a possible infiltration, military sources said Saturday.
The perpetrator “or two” who stabbed and killed five members of one family at Itamar climbed over the fence, sending an alert to six civilians who serve on the settlement’s rapid response security team.
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A company of IDF troops is stationed near the settlement but is not directly hooked up to the fence alert system.
According to the IDF, an alert went off on Friday night at around 9:30 p.m. after the fence was touched. One of the security guards rushed to the scene but did not identify signs of an infiltration – and appears to have assumed that it was a false alarm or set off by an animal.
As a result, the IDF learned about the attack only when it was close to midnight, after the perpetrators had already fled the settlement.
IDF officers said they were investigating the sequence of events – and the decision by the civilian security team not to update the nearby IDF company about a possible infiltration. One officer said it was likely that the civilian security team had operated in accordance with IDF guidelines and was not at fault.
“We need to determine if the current guidelines are applicable,” the officer said. “It is possible that we will decide that every alert needs to be investigated immediately by the IDF.”