A report by families of victims of the October 7 attack has indicted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ‘arrogant’ policies over the years for creating conditions ripe for the Hamas-led attack last year.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamine Netanyahu’s “arrogant” policies over several years and the failure of the national security apparatus led to the October 7 attack, according to the families of the victims.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched the worst terrorist attack on Israel and murdered approximately 1,200 persons. It also injured over 5,000 persons, kidnapped about 250 persons, and took them to the Gaza Strip as hostages.
In the absence of any formal inquiry by the Netanyahu government, families of victims of the October 7 attack set up an independent panel in July dubbed the ‘Civil Commission of Inquiry of the October 7 Disaster’. It was led by former judge Varda Alshech and comprised two retired generals, a retired police commissioner, a former major, and the father of a soldier killed in the attack.
The panel heard around 120 testimonies from former prime ministers, senior leaders, former and current security officials, survivors of the attacks, and heads of volunteer organizations.
The panel concluded that a series of policies by Netanyahu over many years led to the strengthening of Hamas and the development of a culture that discouraged any internal discussion and debate on security-related matters, creating perfect conditions for the October 7 attack.
The report said that Netanyahu constantly undermined the national security decision-making process and created a rift between Israel’s political and military leadership that left the country unprepared for an Oct. 7-like attack, according to The Times of Israel.
