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JERUSALEM — The Israeli military announced Wednesday that it has launched criminal investigations into two incidents that caused Palestinian civilian casualties during the country’s recent military operation in the Gaza Strip, including the high-profile killing of four children playing soccer on a beach.

According to a statement released by the army, that was one of 12 “exceptional” incidents that have been probed by a team of high-ranking officers, none of whom were part of the chain of command during the recent war. The military said it had also opened a criminal investigation into a mortar attack that killed at least 14 people at a school run by the United Nations in Beit Hanoun that was sheltering Palestinians during the war.

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Israel’s announcement came after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat that the agency was mulling an investigation into attacks on its facilities and reports that Palestinian militants used the locations to store weapons. That probe would be separate from one underway by the UN Human Rights Council, which is investigating possible war crimes by Israel during the fighting in Gaza, which killed more than 2,100 Palestinians.