Israeli army struggles to stop weapons theft from bases

Al Bawaba

27-04-2025

Published April 27th, 2025 - 06:47 GMT
ALBAWABA - There are reserve soldiers in the "Gaza Division" in the regions of Rafah that are located at Shabura and Tel al-Sultan. Photos taken by the spokesman for the Israeli army and made available for free use by the media. Also Read Massive fires force evacuations across central Israel
Israeli Channel 12 said on Sunday that the Israeli military is having a tough time countering the phenomena of weapons theft from its sites in a number of different regions, including those that border the Gaza Strip, and that these weapons have reached what it referred to as "criminal entities."
In the region that borders the Palestinian Strip, there are large Israeli army troops stationed. These forces include both those who are taking part in combat operations and those that are providing logistical support to the Israeli army during the conflict in Gaza.
According to a report by the private Channel 12, "In recent days, a Glock pistol and a Mag machine gun were stolen from IDF staging areas in the Gaza envelope."
Furthermore, the station said, citing Israeli police sources who wished to remain anonymous, that a number of Mag machine guns were recently taken from another IDF staging facility located in the southern region.
He went on to say, "Recently, we have seen an increase in the theft of weapons and ammunition from gathering areas, and the Israeli Defense Forces are having a difficult time combating this phenomenon." On occasion, they are not aware of the theft that is taking place in real time.
According to the sources, the stolen firearms and ammunition are making their way to individuals whom they referred to as "criminals," which is compelling the Israeli police to undertake searches and seize an infinite number of warehouses containing weapons.
A spokeswoman for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in reaction to the story that "the IDF views any incident of theft of combat equipment with extreme seriousness and works to prevent such incidents." — Mahalaxmi Ramanathan (@MahalaxmiRaman) April 27, 2025
Additionally, he said, "An investigation has been opened by the Military Police in response to this previous incident." Following the conclusion of the investigation, the results will be sent to the Military Prosecution for further examination.
At the beginning of April, this channel disclosed that a covert investigation that was carried out in conjunction with the Military Police resulted in the arrest of reserve soldiers who were suspected of stealing dozens of hand grenades from a military base located in southern Israel and then selling them to "criminal" entities for thousands of shekels.
Following the conclusion of the inquiry, raids were conducted on the residences of three more suspects located in northern and southern Israel. These individuals were believed to be consumers and had acquired the grenades from the reserve troops.
According to a senior Israeli police officer who spoke to Channel 12 at the time, "If these grenades had leaked into the criminal world, they would have harmed innocent people and served many criminals."
The occupation army has acknowledged that "since October 7, 2023, we have witnessed an increase in the transfer of weapons from army bases into the hands of criminal elements." This information was provided by the "occupation army."
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