Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Cabinet minister Benny Gantz, speaks throughout a press convention within the Kirya navy base in Tel Aviv, Israel, 28 October 2023. ABIR SULTAN POOL/Pool by way of REUTERS
In a shot at his intelligence officers on the X platform on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated he was by no means knowledgeable that Hamas was getting ready a large-scale strike on October 7. Netanyahu then withdrew his remarks and apologized.
The feedback, made at 1 a.m. on Sunday (about 2300 GMT on Saturday) on X, sparked a political storm and a divide inside Netanyahu’s conflict cupboard. Netanyahu has been below hearth from the general public for failing to simply accept accountability for intelligence and operational errors associated to Hamas’s assault of southern Israel.
Top officers have admitted their errors, however Netanyahu has not, together with the heads of the navy, the Shin Bet home surveillance company, and his finance minister.
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He has solely stated that there can be time to ask powerful questions, together with of himself, after the conflict.
Israel’s navy spokesperson, requested about Netanyahu’s feedback throughout a day by day briefing with reporters, declined to reply, saying: “We are now at war, focused on the war.”
Israeli officers have stated occasions main as much as and together with the dealing with of the Hamas assault itself can be investigated, however that the present focus was on the battle.
Netanyahu’s now-deleted put up had stated: “At no time and no stage was a warning given to Prime Minister Netanyahu regarding war intentions of Hamas. On the contrary, all security officials, including the head of army intelligence and the head of the Shin Bet, estimated that Hamas was deterred and interested in an arrangement.”
In a second put up on X about 10 hours later, Netanyahu wrote: “I was wrong,” including that his remarks “should not have been made and I apologize for that.”
“I give full backing to all the heads of the security branches,” he stated.
Netanyahu’s preliminary feedback had been rapidly rebuked by present and previous allies, together with Benny Gantz, a former protection minister who’s now in Netanyahu’s conflict cupboard.
Gantz stated on X that Netanyahu ought to retract what he stated and let the matter go.
“When we are at war, leadership must show responsibility, decide to do the right things and bolster the forces in a way that they can carry out what we demand of them,” Gantz stated.
The well-planned shock Hamas assault was the deadliest for Israel in its 75-year historical past. Israel has since bombarded the Gaza Strip with devastating air strikes and begun floor operations with the intention of toppling the Iran-backed Islamist group and returning scores of captives kidnapped from Israel to Gaza.
The retracted put up “points to just one thing: he (Netanyahu) is not interested in security, he is not interested in hostages, only politics,” stated opposition lawmaker Avigdor Lieberman, as soon as Netanyahu’s protection minister, in a radio interview.
Yossi Cohen, who headed the Mossad spy company below earlier Netanyahu governments, informed Israel Radio: “You take responsibility from the beginning of your job, not from the middle.”
(with inputs from businesses)
