Israel’s military intelligence chief resigns over failure to prevent Oct. 7 attack – National | 24CA News
The head of Israeli navy intelligence resigned on Monday over the failures surrounding Hamas’ unprecedented Oct. 7 assault, the navy stated, changing into the primary senior determine to step down over his function within the deadliest assault in Israel’s historical past.
Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva’s resignation may set the stage for extra resignations amongst Israel’s prime safety brass over Hamas’ assault, when militants blasted by Israel’s border defenses, rampaged by Israeli communities unchallenged for hours and killed 1,200 folks, most civilians, whereas taking roughly 250 hostages into Gaza. That assault set off the battle in opposition to Hamas in Gaza, now in its seventh month.
“The intelligence directorate under my command did not live up to the task we were entrusted with. I carry that black day with me ever since, day after day, night after night. I will carry the horrible pain of the war with me forever,” Haliva wrote in his resignation letter, which was offered by the navy.
Haliva, in addition to different navy and safety leaders, have been broadly anticipated to resign in response to the evident failures that led as much as Oct. 7 and the size of its ferocity.
But the timing of the resignations has been unclear as a result of Israel remains to be combating Hamas in Gaza and battling the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah within the north. Tensions with Iran are additionally at a excessive following assaults between the 2 enemies. Some navy specialists have stated resignations at a time when Israel is engaged on a number of fronts is irresponsible and could possibly be interpreted as an indication of weak spot.
Shortly after the assault, Haliva had publicly stated that he shouldered blame for not stopping the assault as the top of the navy division answerable for offering the federal government and the navy with intelligence warnings and day by day alerts.
While Haliva and others have accepted blame for failing to cease the assault, others have stopped brief, most notably Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has stated he’ll reply powerful questions on his function however has not outright acknowledged direct accountability for permitting the assault to unfold. He has additionally not indicated that he’ll step down, though a rising protest motion is demanding elections be held quickly.
Israeli opposition chief Yair Lapid welcomed the resignation, saying it was “justified and dignified.”
“It would be appropriate for Prime Minister Netanyahu to do the same,” he wrote on X, previously Twitter.
The Hamas assault, which got here on a Jewish vacation, caught Israel and its vaunted safety institution totally off guard. Israelis’ sense of religion of their navy — seen by most Jews as one of many nation’s most reliable establishments — was shattered within the face of Hamas’ onslaught. The resignation may assist restore a few of that belief.
The assault set off the devastating battle that has killed greater than 34,000 Palestinians in Gaza, in accordance with the native well being ministry. The ministry’s rely doesn’t distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, but it surely says a minimum of two-thirds of the useless are youngsters and girls.
The combating has devastated Gaza’s two largest cities, and pushed 80% of the territory’s inhabitants to flee to different components of the besieged coastal enclave. The battle has sparked a humanitarian disaster that has drawn warnings of imminent famine.
The assault additionally despatched shock waves by the area. Beyond Hezbollah and Iran, tensions have rocked the Israeli-occupied West Bank, in addition to cities and cities inside Israel itself.
On Monday, Israeli police stated {that a} automobile had slammed into pedestrians in Jerusalem, wounding three evenly, and safety digicam video confirmed two males exiting the automobile with a rifle earlier than the fleeing the scene. Police later stated they arrested the 2 males.
Associated Press author Julia Frankel contributed to this report from Jerusalem.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
