Israel’s military has admitted to a series of lapses in its response to the deadly Hamas attack on October 7 last year, including delays and incoherence in countermeasures. They released the first results of an investigation into their failure in the attack, the opening phase of the Gaza war.
The report focuses on the border community of Beiri where hundreds of people were killed and 30 others were taken prisoner by Hamas. It was the community hardest hit by the early morning attack that day and was the most important scene of the October 7 conflict. Here a standoff ensued and the militants kept a group of prisoners locked in a house.
The military’s chief spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, said in a televised address that the military failed to protect the residents of Kibbutz Beiri. It is hard and painful for me to say this.’
During the standoff, a tank hit the house, raising concerns that 13 hostages had been killed by their own side. The military concluded that they were likely killed by Hamas freedom fighters and not by Israeli fire, although it is not clear how they reached this conclusion. The report mentions more tests. The army says 340 Hamas fighters attacked the kibbutz.
Investigators have determined, based on the information and their own knowledge, that no civilians were harmed inside the building by the tank fire.’ But they say two Israeli civilians were hit by shrapnel outside the building. The wife of the deceased said that one of them lost his life.
It also said that the commanders present at the time of giving the order to attack the tanks took a ‘professional and responsible decision’. It said the various commanders took a joint decision after hearing gunshots inside the house and militants saying they planned to kill the prisoners and themselves.
“The team understands that the terrorists have probably killed most of the inmates,” the report said.
The report cited a delay of several hours in the arrival of the military and said that, unaware of the seriousness of the situation, they waited outside the kibbutz until late afternoon, when the residents were killed.
The report commended the courage of the residents of Bei’Yeri and the quick response of the civilians of the kibbutz, saying that “stabilizing the defense system for those few hours of fighting was very important.”
Palestinian and human rights groups have sharply criticized the Israeli military, which they say does not punish anyone in its investigations.
Residents of the kibbutz expressed mixed reactions to the report, expressing anger about the army’s failure that day but also praising the responsibility they took.
Resident Meir Zarbiev, whose brother and sister were killed in a Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, described the report as a “hypocrisy” by the military.
“I don’t believe this report and I don’t believe anything about it,” he said.
He added that he still does not understand the reason for the army’s delay in coming and entering the kibbutz. ‘I can’t believe what happened here. I have no explanation. Where was the army?’
The community in a statement called the investigation “detailed” and said it understood the complexity of the day’s fighting.
“We realize the immense importance of the Army here when they accept all blame and responsibility for their complete failure to protect us and apologize for abandoning us for hours during this attack worse than Satan,” the statement said.
On October 7, the kibbutz called for a government commission to investigate the cause of the wider failure, so that ‘the unimaginable loss that we suffered should not be inflicted on any citizen.’
The surprise attack from across the border killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and captured another 250. It was the deadliest attack in Israel’s 76-year history. The attack saw tens of thousands of militants storm across the border unhindered and revealed serious deficiencies in the military’s preparedness, its intelligence assessment and its political leaders’ policies toward Gaza.
According to local health authorities, the Israeli offensive in response to the attack killed more than 38,000 Palestinians, displaced 80 percent of the region’s population, and triggered a humanitarian disaster in Gaza. Israel is now facing war crimes and genocide charges in international courts.
The Army has launched a series of investigations into the failure of the October 7 incident and the head of military intelligence has resigned. Many other military commanders have accepted responsibility for the failure and apologized.
But even after 10 months of war, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected multiple calls for a government-level investigation.
Netanyahu said there can be no investigation when the country is focused on the war against Hamas and all questions will be answered in due course. But critics criticize the Israeli leader as trying to sidestep harsh criticism of his policies and leadership.
At a military event on Thursday, Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Galant said the time had come to form a state commission to investigate the country’s leadership.
He said, ‘(This Commission) will investigate me as Defense Minister. Will investigate the Prime Minister’.
In the face of fierce international criticism, Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war until the 120 remaining hostages are returned home, without eroding Hamas’s military and governing power.
Meanwhile, thousands of Israelis took to the streets for weekly protests calling on Netanyahu to immediately implement a cease-fire. They say time is running out to bring the hostages back safely.
International mediators have renewed efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Netanyahu announced on Thursday that he was sending a team of negotiators to Cairo to continue ceasefire talks but reiterated his stance on not ending the war until Israel achieves its goals.
At the same military event, when he expressed his resolve to fight on ‘as long as it takes until victory is achieved’, people stopped him and chanted, ‘Shame’.