Israel blames ‘operational mishap' for child deaths

The Israeli army has admitted its soldiers made what they called a "professional mistake" when they planted a bomb that killed five Palestinian school children in the Gaza Strip.

The incident was an operational mishap, whose result was grave and saddening. Israeli army

Five children, aged from seven to 14, were killed when they set off the bomb while on their way to school in the Khan Younis refugee camp.

The army acknowledged shortly after the explosion that it had planted a bomb in a sandbagged Palestinian sniper position. It said "the incident was an operational mishap, whose result was grave and saddening".

The planting of the bomb was the result of "professional mistakes and mistaken decisions," the army said.

Several officers will be reprimanded, the military said.

AP