600 OF THE 1200 KILLED WERE IDF
Gallant calls for state inquiry into Oct. 7 that will probe him, Netanyahu and IDF
Crowd at officer graduation ceremony cheers defense minister’s call, particularly after he says commission should investigate PM — who has argued probe should wait till after war
By TOI STAFF
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief Herzi Halevi speak during a graduation ceremony at the IDF’s officers school in southern Israel on July 11, 2024. (Amos Ben Gershom / GPO)
Gallant added that the commission needed to examine the intelligence and operational failures that took place on October 7; the management of the war since; and how Hamas managed to build up its forces over the past decade and plan the terror onslaught.
The defense minister is not the first to demand a state commission of inquiry into October 7. In May, National Unity leader Benny Gantz, who was then a member of the emergency government and the since-dissolved war cabinet, made the same demand after the IDF revealed that Netanyahu had received multiple communiques from Military Intelligence in the spring and summer of 2023 warning him about how Israel’s enemies viewed that year’s mass political upheaval, sparked by the government’s efforts to radically overhaul the judiciary.
National Unity party head Benny Gantz holds a press conference in Ramat Gan on June 9, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Last month, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara implored Netanyahu to cease blocking the launch of a state commission of inquiry, explaining that a probe into the war is essential in fending off actions being taken against Jerusalem at international tribunals.
In a letter to Netanyahu, Baharav-Miara argued that a state commission of inquiry that would examine various aspects of the war was the best defense against the genocide accusations Israel is facing at the International Court of Justice, along with the arrest warrants sought by the top prosecutor of the International Criminal Court against the premier and Gallant.
With the mounting pressure, Netanyahu reportedly began looking into Knesset legislation to establish an independent panel headed by a figure of his choosing in June. State commissions of inquiry are typically headed by a retired Supreme Court Justice, and Esther Hayut is the most obvious choice, given that she just recently finished her tenure as president of the top court. But Netanyahu is reportedly vehemently opposed to her appointment, given her outspoken criticism of his government’s judicial overhaul. Accordingly, legislation to circumvent Hayut has reportedly become Netanyahu’s preferred maneuver.
Baharav-Miara warned against this strategy, writing to Netanyahu that “any other existing mechanism [to probe October 7 failures] would not fit the needs and the unique risks that the country is currently facing.”
Gallant’s call was issued on the same day that the IDF released the results of a probe it conducted into the battle of Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7.
The probe found that the army “failed in its mission to protect the residents of Kibbutz Be’eri” largely because it had never prepared or trained for such an event.
The probe found that the army had difficulty building a clear picture of what was happening in Be’eri until the afternoon, despite the local security team providing information on the fighting starting early in the morning. It also found that security authorities did not provide Be’eri with an adequate warning of the attack.
In response to the results of the probe, Be’eri released a statement demanding that those who were responsible for the failures resign and that a state commission of inquiry be formed to deliver more in-depth answers.
Emanuel Fabian and Sam Sokol contributed to this report.
Crowd at officer graduation ceremony cheers defense minister’s call, particularly after he says commission should investigate PM — who has argued probe should wait till after war
By TOI STAFF
Today, JULY 12,2024
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaks during a graduation ceremony at the IDF's officers school in southern Israel on July 11, 2024. (YouTube screenshot/used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
In a challenge to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on Thursday for the formation of a state commission of inquiry to investigate the Hamas-led October 7 onslaught and the failures surrounding it.
Despite calls from several opposition lawmakers, Netanyahu has insisted that an investigation determining the culpability of the government cannot take place while the war in Gaza is ongoing. He has also been non-committal on establishing a state commission — the investigatory body with the greatest powers — indicating that other formats may be appropriate.
But Gallant, in an address at a ceremony for graduating IDF officers, with Netanyahu watching in the audience, said the probe should not wait any longer and argued that it should be all-encompassing.
“We need an investigation at the national level that will clarify the facts – a state commission of inquiry,” he declared.
“It must examine all of us: the decision-makers and professionals, the government, the army and security services, this government — and the governments over the last decade that led to the events of October 7,” Gallant said to applause.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaks during a graduation ceremony at the IDF's officers school in southern Israel on July 11, 2024. (YouTube screenshot/used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
In a challenge to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on Thursday for the formation of a state commission of inquiry to investigate the Hamas-led October 7 onslaught and the failures surrounding it.
Despite calls from several opposition lawmakers, Netanyahu has insisted that an investigation determining the culpability of the government cannot take place while the war in Gaza is ongoing. He has also been non-committal on establishing a state commission — the investigatory body with the greatest powers — indicating that other formats may be appropriate.
But Gallant, in an address at a ceremony for graduating IDF officers, with Netanyahu watching in the audience, said the probe should not wait any longer and argued that it should be all-encompassing.
“We need an investigation at the national level that will clarify the facts – a state commission of inquiry,” he declared.
“It must examine all of us: the decision-makers and professionals, the government, the army and security services, this government — and the governments over the last decade that led to the events of October 7,” Gallant said to applause.
“It needs to examine me, the defense minister, it must examine the prime minister, the chief of the staff and the head of the Shin Bet, the army and all the national bodies subordinate to the government,” he continued, receiving the most cheers after mentioning the premier.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief Herzi Halevi speak during a graduation ceremony at the IDF’s officers school in southern Israel on July 11, 2024. (Amos Ben Gershom / GPO)
Gallant added that the commission needed to examine the intelligence and operational failures that took place on October 7; the management of the war since; and how Hamas managed to build up its forces over the past decade and plan the terror onslaught.
The defense minister is not the first to demand a state commission of inquiry into October 7. In May, National Unity leader Benny Gantz, who was then a member of the emergency government and the since-dissolved war cabinet, made the same demand after the IDF revealed that Netanyahu had received multiple communiques from Military Intelligence in the spring and summer of 2023 warning him about how Israel’s enemies viewed that year’s mass political upheaval, sparked by the government’s efforts to radically overhaul the judiciary.
National Unity party head Benny Gantz holds a press conference in Ramat Gan on June 9, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Last month, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara implored Netanyahu to cease blocking the launch of a state commission of inquiry, explaining that a probe into the war is essential in fending off actions being taken against Jerusalem at international tribunals.
In a letter to Netanyahu, Baharav-Miara argued that a state commission of inquiry that would examine various aspects of the war was the best defense against the genocide accusations Israel is facing at the International Court of Justice, along with the arrest warrants sought by the top prosecutor of the International Criminal Court against the premier and Gallant.
With the mounting pressure, Netanyahu reportedly began looking into Knesset legislation to establish an independent panel headed by a figure of his choosing in June. State commissions of inquiry are typically headed by a retired Supreme Court Justice, and Esther Hayut is the most obvious choice, given that she just recently finished her tenure as president of the top court. But Netanyahu is reportedly vehemently opposed to her appointment, given her outspoken criticism of his government’s judicial overhaul. Accordingly, legislation to circumvent Hayut has reportedly become Netanyahu’s preferred maneuver.
Baharav-Miara warned against this strategy, writing to Netanyahu that “any other existing mechanism [to probe October 7 failures] would not fit the needs and the unique risks that the country is currently facing.”
Gallant’s call was issued on the same day that the IDF released the results of a probe it conducted into the battle of Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7.
The probe found that the army “failed in its mission to protect the residents of Kibbutz Be’eri” largely because it had never prepared or trained for such an event.
The probe found that the army had difficulty building a clear picture of what was happening in Be’eri until the afternoon, despite the local security team providing information on the fighting starting early in the morning. It also found that security authorities did not provide Be’eri with an adequate warning of the attack.
In response to the results of the probe, Be’eri released a statement demanding that those who were responsible for the failures resign and that a state commission of inquiry be formed to deliver more in-depth answers.
Emanuel Fabian and Sam Sokol contributed to this report.
Detailed IDF Probe Reveals Security Lapses in Kibbutz Be’eri on Israel’s Deadliest Day
A sign saying in Hebrew 'your are the prime you are guilty' against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hung on a house that was damaged during the deadly Oct 7 Hamas attack on the kibbutz on June 24, 2024 in Be'eri, Israel. (Amir Levy/Getty Images)
THE MEDIA LINE STAFF
ISRAEL
07/11/2024
The Israeli military has officially acknowledged significant security failings during the Hamas attack on October 7, which targeted Kibbutz Be’eri, among other locations, resulting in one of the deadliest days in the country’s history. The probe’s findings, released on Thursday, paint a grim picture of unpreparedness and miscoordination that led to the tragic outcomes.
During the attack, more than 100 residents of Be’eri, a small community of about 1,000 people, were killed, and 32 were taken hostage, with 11 still remaining in Gaza. The investigation scrutinized the sequence of events and the conduct of the security forces, revealing that the military was caught off guard by the scale of the infiltration and lacked adequate forces to respond effectively.
“The IDF failed in its mission to defend the residents of Kibbutz Be’eri,” stated Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari in a press conference. He detailed how the residents, vastly outnumbered, fought valiantly against the attackers and how the military’s response was hobbled by a lack of coordination and delayed awareness of the situation.
The report also touched on a controversial incident where tank fire was directed at a house where terrorists held about 15 hostages. The military defended this action, stating that it was a response to immediate threats to the hostages’ lives, although further investigation is needed to determine the exact causes of death for the hostages inside the house.
The release of the military report was a sobering moment for the residents of Be’eri, many of whom are still displaced and grappling with the losses of that day. “I didn’t need all these details,” said Miri Gad Mesika, a member of the kibbutz. “What matters to me is why what happened happened, how we can prevent it from happening again, how we can bring back our hostages, and how we can feel secure again.”
In reaction to these revelations, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant called for a state inquiry to investigate these security lapses further, advocating for accountability that extends up to the highest levels of leadership, including his own role and that of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This call comes amidst Netanyahu’s reluctance to initiate such an inquiry, previously stating that assessments should wait until the war’s end.
The urgency for a state inquiry was underscored by Elam Maor, a member of Kibbutz Be’eri’s local security team, who shared a harrowing account of the day’s events with Channel 12. Maor recounted a critical conversation with Netanyahu at 11:00 a.m. on October 7, during which he informed the Prime Minister of the dire situation: hundreds of terrorists inside the kibbutz and the community’s desperate need for assistance. According to Maor, Netanyahu’s response was that the matter would be handled, yet additional military forces did not arrive until 1:30 p.m., leaving the kibbutz to fend for itself for hours.
07/11/2024
The Israeli military has officially acknowledged significant security failings during the Hamas attack on October 7, which targeted Kibbutz Be’eri, among other locations, resulting in one of the deadliest days in the country’s history. The probe’s findings, released on Thursday, paint a grim picture of unpreparedness and miscoordination that led to the tragic outcomes.
During the attack, more than 100 residents of Be’eri, a small community of about 1,000 people, were killed, and 32 were taken hostage, with 11 still remaining in Gaza. The investigation scrutinized the sequence of events and the conduct of the security forces, revealing that the military was caught off guard by the scale of the infiltration and lacked adequate forces to respond effectively.
“The IDF failed in its mission to defend the residents of Kibbutz Be’eri,” stated Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari in a press conference. He detailed how the residents, vastly outnumbered, fought valiantly against the attackers and how the military’s response was hobbled by a lack of coordination and delayed awareness of the situation.
The report also touched on a controversial incident where tank fire was directed at a house where terrorists held about 15 hostages. The military defended this action, stating that it was a response to immediate threats to the hostages’ lives, although further investigation is needed to determine the exact causes of death for the hostages inside the house.
The release of the military report was a sobering moment for the residents of Be’eri, many of whom are still displaced and grappling with the losses of that day. “I didn’t need all these details,” said Miri Gad Mesika, a member of the kibbutz. “What matters to me is why what happened happened, how we can prevent it from happening again, how we can bring back our hostages, and how we can feel secure again.”
In reaction to these revelations, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant called for a state inquiry to investigate these security lapses further, advocating for accountability that extends up to the highest levels of leadership, including his own role and that of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This call comes amidst Netanyahu’s reluctance to initiate such an inquiry, previously stating that assessments should wait until the war’s end.
The urgency for a state inquiry was underscored by Elam Maor, a member of Kibbutz Be’eri’s local security team, who shared a harrowing account of the day’s events with Channel 12. Maor recounted a critical conversation with Netanyahu at 11:00 a.m. on October 7, during which he informed the Prime Minister of the dire situation: hundreds of terrorists inside the kibbutz and the community’s desperate need for assistance. According to Maor, Netanyahu’s response was that the matter would be handled, yet additional military forces did not arrive until 1:30 p.m., leaving the kibbutz to fend for itself for hours.
Inquiry into October 7 attack says Israeli army failed
2024-07-11
Shafaq News/ An Israeli internal investigation into the attack on the kibbutz of Be’eri on October 7 found that the Israeli military “failed in its mission to protect the residents” and “was not prepared for the extensive infiltration scenario” by Hamas that day, which involved “multiple infiltration points by thousands of terrorists attacking dozens of locations simultaneously.”
Be’eri, located in in the south near Gaza, was one of the hardest hit communities in the October 7 attacks when Hamas militants stormed the kibbutz, killing 101 Israelis, according to the report.
Thirty people were reportedly abducted that day.
The inquiry said the military had trained for isolated and specific infiltrations. “As a result, there were no additional reserve forces in the area that could have been sent to Kibbutz Be’eri,” the inquiry said.
Responding to the inquiry’s report, the Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said it “clearly illustrates the magnitude of the failure and the scale of the disaster that befell the residents of the south who defended their families with their bodies for many hours while the IDF was not there to protect them.”
The inquiry found that “the IDF struggled to create a clear and accurate situational assessment of what was happening in the kibbutz until the afternoon of October 7,” even though the local emergency team had provided an updated assessment.
“Combat in the area during the initial hours was characterized by a lack of command and control, a lack of coordination, and a lack of order among the different forces and units. This led to several incidents where security forces grouped at the entrance to the kibbutz without immediately engaging in combat,” the report said.
“The inquiry found that the security officials did not provide sufficient warning to the residents of Kibbutz Be’eri about the infiltration of terrorists during the initial hours of the terrorist attack,” the report continued.
The inquiry concluded that the turning point came only when a senior officer was appointed to coordinate forces in the area, leading to the regaining of operational control of the kibbutz.
“Despite operational errors and mistakes in force deployment, the inquiry team noted that the combat in Be’eri included a series of acts of heroism and supreme courage by the fighting forces, commanders, and security personnel who fought in the kibbutz, saving many residents,” the report said.
Thirty one security personnel were killed in the area after some “340 terrorists infiltrated the kibbutz,” of whom about 100 were killed, it said.
The inquiry team found that that the attack on Be’eri began at around 7 a.m. local time on October 7 and that Hamas controlled the kibbutz for about four hours.
During this period, the “first IDF soldiers arrive, are hit, evacuate the wounded, exit the kibbutz, and, positioning themselves at the entrance of the kibbutz, engage in combat with the terrorists who reached the gate.”
By 4.15 p.m., the 99th Division had established itself at the kibbutz and began organizing command and control.
By 6 p.m., “about 700 IDF soldiers and security forces are operating in the area of the kibbutz,” the inquiry found.
The Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Halevi, accepted the conclusions of the inquiry, and acknowledged that “the IDF did not fulfil its mission to defend the residents in the most grave manner and failed in its mission.”
Halevi noted that “from the afternoon hours onwards, forces were waiting outside the kibbutz while the massacre continued inside. This situation is extremely grave and cannot occur.”
“The reasons for this were found to include that commanders who arrived with forces entered the kibbutz with a part of the force to better understand the situation; some forces did not initiate contact since they did not understand the severity of the situation and the lack of adequate forces; some of those waiting outside were support forces providing a perimeter for those engaged in combat inside the kibbutz,” he said.
As for prioritizing the evacuation of wounded soldiers, Halevi said that civilian protection was the highest-priority mission. “Soldiers must always give priority to assisting civilians in evacuation, defense and any other need that arises in a combat zone,” he said.
Separately, Halevi told a graduation ceremony Thursday for new officers that the Israeli had worked with all partners “to understand in detail and depth what happened and what we must learn to prevent it from happening again in the future.”
2024-07-11
Shafaq News/ An Israeli internal investigation into the attack on the kibbutz of Be’eri on October 7 found that the Israeli military “failed in its mission to protect the residents” and “was not prepared for the extensive infiltration scenario” by Hamas that day, which involved “multiple infiltration points by thousands of terrorists attacking dozens of locations simultaneously.”
Be’eri, located in in the south near Gaza, was one of the hardest hit communities in the October 7 attacks when Hamas militants stormed the kibbutz, killing 101 Israelis, according to the report.
Thirty people were reportedly abducted that day.
The inquiry said the military had trained for isolated and specific infiltrations. “As a result, there were no additional reserve forces in the area that could have been sent to Kibbutz Be’eri,” the inquiry said.
Responding to the inquiry’s report, the Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said it “clearly illustrates the magnitude of the failure and the scale of the disaster that befell the residents of the south who defended their families with their bodies for many hours while the IDF was not there to protect them.”
The inquiry found that “the IDF struggled to create a clear and accurate situational assessment of what was happening in the kibbutz until the afternoon of October 7,” even though the local emergency team had provided an updated assessment.
“Combat in the area during the initial hours was characterized by a lack of command and control, a lack of coordination, and a lack of order among the different forces and units. This led to several incidents where security forces grouped at the entrance to the kibbutz without immediately engaging in combat,” the report said.
“The inquiry found that the security officials did not provide sufficient warning to the residents of Kibbutz Be’eri about the infiltration of terrorists during the initial hours of the terrorist attack,” the report continued.
The inquiry concluded that the turning point came only when a senior officer was appointed to coordinate forces in the area, leading to the regaining of operational control of the kibbutz.
“Despite operational errors and mistakes in force deployment, the inquiry team noted that the combat in Be’eri included a series of acts of heroism and supreme courage by the fighting forces, commanders, and security personnel who fought in the kibbutz, saving many residents,” the report said.
Thirty one security personnel were killed in the area after some “340 terrorists infiltrated the kibbutz,” of whom about 100 were killed, it said.
The inquiry team found that that the attack on Be’eri began at around 7 a.m. local time on October 7 and that Hamas controlled the kibbutz for about four hours.
During this period, the “first IDF soldiers arrive, are hit, evacuate the wounded, exit the kibbutz, and, positioning themselves at the entrance of the kibbutz, engage in combat with the terrorists who reached the gate.”
By 4.15 p.m., the 99th Division had established itself at the kibbutz and began organizing command and control.
By 6 p.m., “about 700 IDF soldiers and security forces are operating in the area of the kibbutz,” the inquiry found.
The Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Halevi, accepted the conclusions of the inquiry, and acknowledged that “the IDF did not fulfil its mission to defend the residents in the most grave manner and failed in its mission.”
Halevi noted that “from the afternoon hours onwards, forces were waiting outside the kibbutz while the massacre continued inside. This situation is extremely grave and cannot occur.”
“The reasons for this were found to include that commanders who arrived with forces entered the kibbutz with a part of the force to better understand the situation; some forces did not initiate contact since they did not understand the severity of the situation and the lack of adequate forces; some of those waiting outside were support forces providing a perimeter for those engaged in combat inside the kibbutz,” he said.
As for prioritizing the evacuation of wounded soldiers, Halevi said that civilian protection was the highest-priority mission. “Soldiers must always give priority to assisting civilians in evacuation, defense and any other need that arises in a combat zone,” he said.
Separately, Halevi told a graduation ceremony Thursday for new officers that the Israeli had worked with all partners “to understand in detail and depth what happened and what we must learn to prevent it from happening again in the future.”
No comments:
Post a Comment