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Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Revelations of the offended: security forces blamed Netanyahu for the deaths of Israelis

2026-11-11

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
by Leonid Tsukanov

[Regnum] In early November, former Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, who left his post in March 2025, spoke publicly for the first time since his resignation. He immediately sparked an international scandal by speaking out about the events of "Black October."

He not only called the Hamas attack on Israel preventable, but also acknowledged his country's responsibility for the deaths of some of the hostages.

Because perfection is possible in war? And omniscience as well?

The timing of the speech was no accident: in the difficult period following the difficult elections, the retired officers had an excellent opportunity to shift the blame to their superiors.

REVELATIONS FROM THE GENERAL STAFF
Speaking at the Shurat HaDin conference in New York, Herzi Halevi called the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, a "preventable catastrophe." He argued that the crisis had been building for years, and the government's deliberate policy of pressuring the Palestinian population, including numerous provocations on the Temple Mount, had only accelerated it.

A Jew with trembling knees?

At the end of September 2023, Hamas leaders were even prepared to roll back the already prepared Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, which subsequently marked the beginning of a long-term war, but they did not see the Jewish state’s willingness to take reciprocal de-escalatory steps.

Uh huh. There's a really cute bridge in Brooklyn that I've had my eye on, a larger version of the one we have in Cincinnati...

Moreover, according to Ha-Levi, Israel clearly underestimated its opponents in the initial stages of the war in the Gaza Strip. Hoping to sow panic in the Palestinian exclave with decisive airstrikes against Hamas decision-making centers, the military leadership pushed the Palestinian movement to stay close to the hostages, leading to the deaths of some of them.

Hamas, et al kidnapping them led to the deaths of all who died, and the torment of all who survived. Don't remove agency from those ultimately responsible for what happened to whom.

The revelations caused quite a stir in the international press,

...looking, as they were, for any evil that could be blamed on Israel, with no concern about the truth of the matter...

as they marked the first time a high-ranking Israeli commander, albeit retired, had admitted to violating the laws of war. This contradicted the official Israeli government line, which insists that Hamas is responsible for the hostages' bloodshed.

It's all the more surprising that both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the most ardent defenders of the Gaza operation chose to ignore the New York speech. This is likely because Ha-Levi didn't focus solely on the accusations and instead praised the IDF's military victories in Lebanon, also pointing out the impossibility of defeating Hamas without a ground operation in Gaza.

So we're to cherry pick a single claim out of the entire speech, are we?

The only one in the government camp to respond to the former Chief of General Staff's remarks was National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. In his usual manner, he recalled that it was not the army, but the police, of which he was chief, that held back the initial Hamas attacks. However, his words should be interpreted merely as an attempt to bolster his image as the "defender of the country" and score additional political points.

We're to ignore the truth of the matter here as well, just because the writer loathes Minister Ben-Gvir? Got it.

The parliamentary opposition remained silent, apparently unwilling to dwell on the sensitive issue. The fate of the hostages was relegated to the background.

Israeli society reacted much more harshly: Ha-Levi was bombarded with threats and accusations of trying to "wash away the shame" and reboot his career.

OTHERS ARE NOT FAR BEHIND
At the same time, Ha-Levi was not the first of the “October retirees” (as officers whose jobs were lost in the war with Hamas are called in Israel) to recently try to turn the tragedy to his advantage.

Thus, a few days before the former Chief of General Staff's speech, the former head of Mossad intelligence, David Barnea, let it slip in an interview with American television that "certain Israeli officials" had secretly persuaded Qatar to increase funding for Hamas in exchange for a commitment not to attack Israel.

Although Doha warned that such a plan could backfire, a policy of appeasement of the Palestinian movement was agreed upon at the top. Furthermore, Barnea stated that his people had repeatedly passed on signals to the leadership from the intelligence services of friendly countries—the UAE and Egypt—but they had gone unheeded.

However, Ronen Bar, the former head of Shin Bet counterintelligence, went the furthest. Following the formula "every problem has a last name, first name, and patronymic," he publicly placed full responsibility for the failures in the war with Hamas on Netanyahu.

Israelis play hardball politics.

Back in mid-October, Bar filed a lawsuit against the prime minister for 3 million shekels (approximately $940,000). The lawsuit alleged, among other things, that counterintelligence not only repeatedly warned the government of Hamas's readiness for a large-scale attack on Israel, but also proposed options for preemptively defeating the Palestinian insurgency.

Do remember that Hamas deliberately sent out false messages and conducted desensitization activities to fool Israel while preparing with Iran's aid for the invasion they started on 10/7. It was done as they'd trained -- they were just a bit early off the mark.

Nevertheless, Netanyahu considered the threat "media-blown" and repeatedly vetoed Bar's proposals. And when the chips were down, he accused him of incompetence and strategic failure.

This behavior is hardly surprising. Unlike Ha-Levi and Barnea, who formally resigned voluntarily, Bar left his post amid scandal after months of systemic pressure from Netanyahu and his allies. Therefore, he doesn't consider it shameful to blame his former boss for the national security crisis.

CHOOSE THE LAST ONE
It's no coincidence that the "October Resignations" have become increasingly active in the last month. Against the backdrop of difficult parliamentary elections that resulted in a Pyrrhic victory for the ruling coalition led by Netanyahu (his opponent, Gadi Eisenkot, ultimately received the mandate to form a government),

(yes, he did -- we'll see if he manages to make a go of it, or if his failure will allow the mandate to pass to Bibi)

the current prime minister has found himself especially vulnerable to criticism.

Any coordinated attack against him undermines the coalition's overall authority and forces Israeli society to think again and again about the causes of the crisis, as well as Netanyahu's role in it.

Considering that the former leaders of the army and intelligence services clearly express their disapproval of the prime minister's early end to their careers, the ruined post-election period could well pass for satisfaction. Moreover, each of the outspoken military leaders has their own hidden interest in quickly washing away the consequences of the war with Hamas.

For example, this legacy is preventing Bar from developing an academic career at the private Reichmann University, where the former head of counterintelligence previously attempted to establish his own department but encountered resistance from the hostages' relatives.

Ha-Levi is to work at the National Security College, where he planned to go after retirement but is now on the institution's unofficial blacklist. Barnea is to consult for Mossad operatives (he is currently the only living director of national intelligence to whom this option is not available).

Government positions and ministerial portfolios also remain beyond their dreams for the same reasons.

If the charges for the October 7 failures are officially dropped, the careers of the "October retirees" will once again take off.

Posted by:badanov

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