John Hilly
Ylipäällikkö
Waze responds to Kalandia incident: "The soldiers veered off their route"
After two IDF soldiers accidentally entered the Kalandia refugee camp and were attacked by Palestinians yesterday, an IDF investigation found that they got lost using the Waze navigation app. The company responded to the accusations, claiming that the soldiers veered off their original route and switched off the default settings that could prevent such an incident.
After a preliminary investigation by the IDF found that the soldiers that accidentally entered the Kalandia refugee camp yesterday evening (Monday) got lost using Waze, the navigation app company responded to the accusations, claiming that “the soldiers veered off of the original route that was suggested to them."
“The application consists of specific default settings that are meant to prevent navigation through areas that are marked as dangerous or forbidden for Israelis,” Waze stated. “In this case, the default setting was switched off in the app that was used and there was a deviation from the original route. As a result of the deviation, the passengers entered the forbidden area.”
Waze went on to stress that “it is the responsibility of every driver to follow and obey the road and traffic signs and to abide by the local rules.” The company noted that noticeable signs have been placed on the roads leading into the areas of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian Authority, which they claimed “suffice in order to prevent access to the site of the incident.”
According to the investigation of the incident that took place yesterday night, young Palestinians encircled the vehicle in which two IDF soldiers from the Oketz Unit were diving in order to reach their military base. The Palestinians blocked off the vehicle’s way and hurled stones and Molotov cocktails towards it. The vehicle was set on fire and the two soldiers managed to flee the scene, splitting up while they were escaping. One of the soldiers was located after an hour near the settlement of Kokhav Ya’akov, and the second was located half an hour later in the courtyard of the refugee camp, where he hid for more than an hour.
Large masses of IDF, Shin Bet and Israel Border Police forces were summoned to the scene, including special units. Helicopters and flares were used as part of the massive efforts to locate the soldiers and prevent a lynch from taking place. Fire was exchanged between Israeli security forces and armed Palestinians throughout the incident. Five IDF soldiers were injured as a result the fire exchanges and were evacuated to the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, and two Palestinians were killed.
http://www.jerusalemonline.com/news...ne&utm_campaign=EveningNewsletter+-+Recurring
After two IDF soldiers accidentally entered the Kalandia refugee camp and were attacked by Palestinians yesterday, an IDF investigation found that they got lost using the Waze navigation app. The company responded to the accusations, claiming that the soldiers veered off their original route and switched off the default settings that could prevent such an incident.
After a preliminary investigation by the IDF found that the soldiers that accidentally entered the Kalandia refugee camp yesterday evening (Monday) got lost using Waze, the navigation app company responded to the accusations, claiming that “the soldiers veered off of the original route that was suggested to them."
“The application consists of specific default settings that are meant to prevent navigation through areas that are marked as dangerous or forbidden for Israelis,” Waze stated. “In this case, the default setting was switched off in the app that was used and there was a deviation from the original route. As a result of the deviation, the passengers entered the forbidden area.”
Waze went on to stress that “it is the responsibility of every driver to follow and obey the road and traffic signs and to abide by the local rules.” The company noted that noticeable signs have been placed on the roads leading into the areas of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian Authority, which they claimed “suffice in order to prevent access to the site of the incident.”
According to the investigation of the incident that took place yesterday night, young Palestinians encircled the vehicle in which two IDF soldiers from the Oketz Unit were diving in order to reach their military base. The Palestinians blocked off the vehicle’s way and hurled stones and Molotov cocktails towards it. The vehicle was set on fire and the two soldiers managed to flee the scene, splitting up while they were escaping. One of the soldiers was located after an hour near the settlement of Kokhav Ya’akov, and the second was located half an hour later in the courtyard of the refugee camp, where he hid for more than an hour.
Large masses of IDF, Shin Bet and Israel Border Police forces were summoned to the scene, including special units. Helicopters and flares were used as part of the massive efforts to locate the soldiers and prevent a lynch from taking place. Fire was exchanged between Israeli security forces and armed Palestinians throughout the incident. Five IDF soldiers were injured as a result the fire exchanges and were evacuated to the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, and two Palestinians were killed.
http://www.jerusalemonline.com/news...ne&utm_campaign=EveningNewsletter+-+Recurring
