When the chief of Israel’s navy, Admiral Ram Rothberg pulls an April fools prank, one can only expect it will be big. Well, in this case, it became bigger than planned or desired, leaving many angry officers, soldiers, parents and family members.

The admiral decided to tell his senior command they must prepare for a major training operation in Italy that will keep them out of the country for at least 10 days, an event that would also involve the United States. He instructed them to refrain from telling subordinates at this stage.

Some of the commanders however told some of their junior officers, who told… Sailors began calling home, sending text messages, informing family members they would be gone for two weeks or more, unable to provide details. This was big news considering Pesach is on the horizon. Some parents were heading to the naval basis to bring additional clothing, food and money. Some soldiers transferred funds and withdrew money to have cash on hand in Italy. In short, many people of different ranks were preparing for the major operation, which they ultimately learned was nothing more than an April fools prank that got out of hand, in actuality, due to the officers who shared the information with others.

IDF senior command is not smiling and an investigation is underway. The IDF spokesman stated that appropriate lesions will be learned from this most unfortunate incident.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)