The only issue I see here is the EDGE| refusing to play along with the event and deciding to do it their own way.
If they really were interested in joining the event to enrich the experience for both sides, they could:
Discuss it with the organizer of the event beforehand - and that does not mean 5mins before event starts, in form of in-game PMs, but as a post in event thread at least a couple of days earlier.
Make indie Military/Daumann chars and join the fun, and then no one would've cared about them running to base, getting regens from Battleship or resupplying over and over thanks to the new fleeing rule.
You see... When things get screwed up "according to plan", no one gets mad. But when an uninvited guest comes in and makes a mess, that's when things go a bit tricky.
All these said, I believe arguing over what's already done and gone won't win anyone anything. Whether side A is right or side B won't change the outcome of the event, neither would it effect the expression which the event have left on players of each side. However, one thing we can do, is to note the weaknesses of this event, and instead of trying to find the 'cause' of it all, simply try to find ways to prevent such situations in future events, be it IMG-related or not.
