Fighter pilot on the 'No Other Land' storm: 'War is hell, but the death tolls are inflated'

A senior reserve fighter pilot, Col. A, breaks his silence following the film 'No Other Land' that won at the Venice Film Festival. He describes the IDF's strike approval process, denies the claim that an attack with 500 casualties was approved, and defends the combat doctrine while acknowledging the human cost. In his words, the alternative to war is a white flag.

Colonel (res.) A, a fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force's 101 Squadron who has carried out thousands of strikes in every possible arena and until about a year ago commanded the Ramat David Airbase, breaks his silence following the film 'No Other Land' that won at the Venice Film Festival and reignited the public debate over Israel's conduct of the war in Gaza. In an interview with Ynet, he describes the complex strike approval process, which includes intelligence verification, 'incrimination' of targets, a chain of approvals, and assessment of field conditions. He strongly denies the film's central claim that an attack that could have killed 500 people was approved: 'I have never encountered such a number, nor anything close to it.' Alongside this, he acknowledges the human cost: 'War is real hell, but talk of inflated numbers is a tool for attention.' He defends the IDF's combat doctrine, criticizes Hamas for operating from civilian areas, and states that he is not angry at the filmmakers but would ask them: 'What would you do in my place?'