A potential tragedy was narrowly avoided on Saturday near Gaza, when a missile fired by an IDF unit unexpectedly changed direction mid-flight and landed back inside Israel proper. The missile struck just a few yards from the soldiers who had fired it, igniting a significant fire that was later extinguished by firefighters from the IDF's Lapid Unit. The IDF has opened an immediate investigation into the serious incident.
The event occurred in the early afternoon, when the unit was launching missiles at targets in Gaza. To the surprise of the soldiers, one of the missiles abruptly reversed course, crashing down just a short distance from them. The resulting explosion caused a large blaze that threatened to spread further.
Lapid Unit firefighting crews, who have been operating in the area since the start of the war in Gaza, rushed to the scene and successfully brought the fire under control before it could expand. Fortunately, there were no injuries or fatalities, despite the grave danger the missile posed to nearby troops.
The IDF has launched a rapid and thorough investigation to determine how the missile was able to change direction, with the goal of preventing similar incidents in the future.
"This was extremely lucky," said an IDF officer in response to the incident. "We must fully investigate what happened here and understand how one of our own missiles reversed course. This is a serious event that requires a comprehensive review of all procedures and equipment involved."
