JERUSALEM: A senior Israeli official on Saturday admitted “mistakes” in intelligence assessments ahead of a brutal Hamas attack last weekend that took the country by surprise.
Palestinian militants early October 7 launched a multi-pronged assault, breaching the Gaza border barrier and targeting southern Israeli communities and army bases.
“It’s my mistake, and it reflects the mistakes of all those making (intelligence) assessments,” National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi told a press briefing when asked about his recent remarks predicting no Hamas aggression.
“We really believed that Hamas learned the lesson from” its last major war with Israel in 2021, Hanegbi said.
More than 1,300 civilians and security forces have been killed since the attack began, according to Israeli officials, and at least 120 have been seized by militants and believed to be held captive in Gaza.
Hanegbi rejected negotiations toward any prisoner swap deal with Hamas.
“There’s no way to negotiate with an enemy we have sworn to obliterate,” he said.
Relentless Israeli air strikes on the blockaded Palestinian enclave over the past week have killed upwards of 2,200 including at least 600 children, Hamas officials said.
Israel admits intelligence ‘mistakes’ in failing to predict Hamas attacks
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Israel admits intelligence ‘mistakes’ in failing to predict Hamas attacks
- "It's my mistake, and it reflects the mistakes of all those making (intelligence) assessments," said National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi
- Israel admits intelligence ‘mistakes’ in failing to predict Hamas attacks
Israeli airstrike kills two in Gaza, Israel says targeted Hamas militant
- Several people were also wounded in the airstrike, which struck a house in Gaza City
CAIRO/JERUSALEM: An Israeli airstrike killed at least two Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday, local health authorities said, in what the military said was a retaliatory attack on a Hamas militant that was launched after its troops had come under fire.
Medical officials did not immediately identify the people killed. They said several people were also wounded in the airstrike, which struck a house in Gaza City. There was no immediate comment from Hamas.
The Israeli military said that Hamas militants had shot at soldiers earlier on Wednesday and that the airstrike targeted a senior Hamas militant who had directed attacks on its troops. The military did not say whether it had suffered any casualties.
Separately on Wednesday, in the southern Gaza area of Rafah, an Israeli-backed Palestinian militia said that it had killed two Hamas men, marking a renewed challenge to the militant group.
Hamas has been reestablishing its grip in the enclave, where it continues to command thousands of men despite suffering heavy blows during the war.
Israel occupies over half of Gaza — areas where Hamas’ foes operate beyond its reach. With US President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza moving slowly, there is no immediate prospect of further Israeli withdrawals.
Fighting has greatly abated since Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in October after two years of war, but it has not stopped entirely. Both sides have accused each other of violations of the ceasefire.
More than 400 Palestinians, most of them civilians according to Gaza health officials, have been killed since the truce began, as well as three Israeli soldiers.
