Israelis demand accountability over 7 October failures three years after attacks

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again refused to accept personal responsibility for the October 7, 2023 Hamas assault that killed about 1,200 Israelis and abducted 251, and he has declined to order an independent state inquiry into the security failure. The most harrowing episode unfolded in the kibbutz of Kfar Aza, where, shortly after 07:00, Hamas gunmen overran the community’s armoury and murdered half of its 14‑member civil‑defence squad, while a total of 64 residents were killed and 19 taken hostage. Survivors such as Inbar Goldstein, whose brother and niece were among the dead and whose other relatives were kidnapped, now demand that the nation acknowledge and investigate the systemic breakdown that allowed the attack—the deadliest Israel has faced since its founding in 1948.

The controversy centers on a series of ignored warnings that preceded the raid. Female soldiers stationed along the Gaza border, including the late Roni Eshel of the Nahal Oz base, repeatedly reported suspicious activity and potential preparations for a large‑scale operation, yet their alerts were not acted upon. Additional intelligence allegedly came from regional actors: a recent Haaretz report cited a United Arab Emirates leader who called Netanyahu ten days before the assault to warn of Hamas plans, a claim the prime minister’s office has dismissed as false and is preparing to sue over. Critics argue that both Israel’s own security chiefs and foreign sources signaled an imminent threat, but Netanyahu has blamed those chiefs for deliberately not waking him, fearing he would order a massive IDF deployment that could have escalated the situation.

Analysts and journalists question whether waking the prime minister would have altered the outcome. Yaakov Katz, author of *While Israel Slept*, notes that senior military and intelligence officials expected at most a limited incursion, and that even if Netanyahu had been alerted, his established policy of containment might have constrained any pre‑emptive strike. The lack of a formal investigation fuels fears that the same intelligence gaps could recur, especially as Netanyahu campaigns for re‑election on a platform of tougher security. Families of victims, like Goldstein and Elad Levy—uncle of the slain soldier Eshel—continue to press for accountability, warning that without a thorough inquiry the nation risks repeating the tragedy that still haunts communities along the Gaza border.

⚡ Effects Interpreter