Posted on 03/07/24
| News Source: Arutz-7
IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi sent a letter to the commanders of the IDF announcing the launching of an investigation into the failures that led to Israel being taken by surprise by the Hamas invasion on the morning of October 7, leading to the massacre of over 1,200 people, the taking of 240 hostages, and the beginning of the ongoing war against Hamas. The investigation will focus on the period between 2018 and October 7, 2023, in particular the intelligence failures of that period.
The Chief of Staff's letter began, "The "Swords of Iron" War began with a surprise that resulted in a difficult outcome and a significant loss of civilian and soldier lives. Since then, the IDF has been defending and striking successfully and effectively - we had a difficult start, we recovered and we are making significant progress."
"Reviews hold an honorable place in our military values. They are the lever that allows for improvement after failure, a way to be better after success, the tool with which a unit can build itself a climbing route that will elevate it indefinitely," he said.
According to Halevi, "Just as charging in the face of enemy fire requires strength and courage, holding ourselves accountable and facing reviews also requires bravery and leadership."
"Reviews have one purpose: learning! We suffered tough events at the start of the war, and we failed to protect civilians - our most important mission. If we do not bravely assess our doings, we will experience difficulty in learning and improving; we will experience difficulty standing before Israel's people and proclaiming that we have inquired, learned, and will know how to better protect them.
He promised, "In the coming months, we will review our defensive capabilities at the beginning of the war and the circumstances that preceded it. Reviews regarding the offensive operations phase will be conducted by each unit after concluding its fighting, as early as possible. Senior-level reviews among the General Staff in this area will be conducted later after we have finished the defensive reviews."
"We will conduct these reviews while fighting in a multi-arena war. The IDF’s forces are focused on achieving the goals of the war, operating on all fronts. The existence of operational reviews while fighting is necessary to improve the IDF’s combat capabilities. This requires a balance and quality distribution of attention from the commanders, with the focus of course being fighting.