IDF Soldier Dies In ‘Rare’ Tank Training Accident During Golan Military Exercise

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — IDF soldier Eitan Fichman (19) from Be’er Sheva died under unclear circumstances during a tank exercise in northern Israel on Tuesday night.

According to the initial Israel Defense Forces probe of the incident, Fichman, from the 82nd Armored Corps Battalion, was found unconscious with a “severe head injury” inside a tank during the live fire drill in the Golan Heights.

Fichman, a loader, was found with his head in an unsafe area of the tank between the turret and the hull. Soldiers may under no circumstances put any body parts into this gap while the turret’s movement system is on, according to IDF protocols.

Fichman’s family had also suffered a previous tragedy after his sister died of illness five years ago at the age of 24.

The initial probe stated that the soldier may have hit his head while the tank was driving or collapsed due to an unspecified medical condition and fallen into the unsafe area of the tank where he was found.

The investigation said that while the tank was driving, the commander noticed that the loader was not responding. The team then stopped and removed the soldier from the tank, and the exercise was halted.

Medical teams reached the scene and the soldier was brought to an APC to take him for further medical treatment at a nearby base. But Fichman’s death was declared en route, according to the initial IDF probe.

The incident was described by the IDF as “extremely rare” and it was not fully clear how the soldier ended up in the unsafe area of the tank. The area is adjacent to where the loader stands but they are trained not to be in that area while the turret’s electronic movement systems are in motion.

In a statement Wednesday afternoon, the IDF said that the chief of the Northern Command had appointed Col. Shaul Israeli, the commander of the 205th Brigade, to lead a team of experts that would investigate the matter.

Separately, a Military Police probe was opened which would submit its findings to the Military General Advocate Corps for evaluation. Fichman was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant.

The head of the IDF’s Ground Forces ordered a halt to all training exercises involving armored vehicles, aside from shooting range practice, until the matter was investigated further.