There were many reasons why the air force and the IDF Southern Command each failed to prevent major aspects of Hamas
..always the voice of sweet reason...’s October 7, 2023 invasion, but one reason that has emerged from the IDF’s probes, and was finally belatedly approved for publication, was the potential attempt(s) to assassinate Hamas Military Chief Mohammed Deif.
It turns out that in the early morning of October 7, while IDF chief of staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi, IDF Southern Command Chief Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkleman, and others were trying to understand if Hamas was planning some kind of an attack (a small attack in between two to eight locations, not a massive penetration in 114 spots), Air Force Chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar spent hours probing if there was a chance to assassinate Deif.
In fact, Bar and the IDF had tracked Deif leaving his house and entering Hamas’s underground network on his way to the underground command center. The focus on assets to further such an liquidation plan might have been used to better understand Hamas’s intentions.
Finkleman was also investing significant resources into understanding where Deif was located, and how he and other top Hamas officials were working to figure out whether they were planning an invasion.
All of this may sound strange knowing, after-the-fact, that Israel was facing the most dangerous invasion in 50 years.
RESOURCES INVESTED IN TRACKING DEIF
But at the time, Bar, Finkleman, and essentially all of the other top Israeli security officials did not view a major surprise attack as even remotely likely.
In contrast, they had tried to assassinate Deif many times over a decade, twice even wounding him, but had always failed to finish him off.
Also, before October 7, many still viewed Deif as more important and dangerous than Hamas’s Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about
oppressionand
disproportionate response...
Chief Yahya Sinwar.
On the morning of October 7, at 7:58 a.m., it was Deif who notified all of Gaza and the world about the invasion and called on all Gazooks and other members of the Iranian axis to join forces to try to overwhelm Israel.
SINWAR IDENTIFIED AS ARCHITECT OF INVASION LATER
Eventually, Sinwar was recognized as the ideological architect of a major invasion, even if Deif managed the military planning, and he became viewed as Israel’s top target.
Deif was finally killed in July 2024 and Sinwar in October 2024 after initially failing to catch or kill either of them in the invasions of northern Gaza, Khan Yunis, and Rafah.
It has also recently been approved for publication that an IDF drone observed Gazook holy warriors removing coverings from rockets aimed at Israel, which could have signaled greater readiness for a wider attack.
Despite this and other signs, no top IDF officer had the full picture of what was going on, and those who did believed the worst-case scenario was a small attempt to breach into one or two villages in Israel.
Related:
Mohammed Deif 07/28/2026 The International Courts are sitting ducks
Mohammed Deif 05/19/2026 Hamas appointed Mohammed Awda as the new military leader of its Qassam Brigades, succeeding Izz al-Din al-Haddad,
Mohammed Deif 09/25/2025 Gaza death toll climbs to 51 as Israeli strikes intensify
Mohammed Deif 07/28/2026 The International Courts are sitting ducks
Mohammed Deif 05/19/2026 Hamas appointed Mohammed Awda as the new military leader of its Qassam Brigades, succeeding Izz al-Din al-Haddad,
Mohammed Deif 09/25/2025 Gaza death toll climbs to 51 as Israeli strikes intensify