[ Benjamin Netanyahu was given updates from the IDF concerning the
possibility of a Hamas attack. He is responsible and also to blame for
what happened on that Black Saturday. He failed in his most important
duty, to ensure the security of Israelis.]
[[link removed]]

HAARETZ EDITORIAL: NETANYAHU KNEW. NETANYAHU IGNORED. NETANYAHU IS
RESPONSIBLE  
[[link removed]]


 

Haaretz Editorial
November 22, 2023
Haaretz
[[link removed]]


*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

_ Benjamin Netanyahu was given updates from the IDF concerning the
possibility of a Hamas attack. He is responsible and also to blame for
what happened on that Black Saturday. He failed in his most important
duty, to ensure the security of Israelis. _

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a press conference at
IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel, last month., Credit: Abir Sultan
/ AP // Haaretz

 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was given updates from the Israel
Defense Forces’ Military Intelligence Directorate concerning the
possibility of a Hamas attack. It is the same intelligence body that
Netanyahu tweeted about on October 29 at 1:10 A.M., asserting that
“under no circumstances and at no stage was Prime Minister Netanyahu
warned about Hamas’ intending to go to war.”

Netanyahu’s predilection for distorting the truth comes as no
surprise to anyone, but Haaretz’s Chaim Levinson reported that the
head of Military Intelligence’s research arm had personally warned
Netanyahu 
[[link removed]]that
“an opportunity has been identified for a perfect storm – an
internal crisis, a wide escalation of the Palestinian arena and a
challenge from other arenas – that would lead to multidimensional
and continuous pressures.” Brig. Gen. Amit Sa’ar stressed that
“this analysis is not an interpretation of the reality, but based on
a situational assessment by the leadership, intelligence personnel and
communications.”

But Netanyahu chose to ignore this dire professional assessment
[[link removed]],
and soon afterward, he opted to make the situation even worse: Just
days after getting the letter, the prime minister chose to dismiss
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant after the latter also warned about
exactly the same danger. Only because the public went out en masse to
protest against this preposterous act, which was based on
fundamentally flawed considerations, did Netanyahu decide to keep
Gallant on the job.

Sa’ar didn’t stop with the one letter he sent to Netanyahu in
March, but wrote a second one in July. It opened with a warning that
“the worsening of the crisis has deepened the erosion of Israel’s
image, has further undercut Israeli deterrence and increases
the likelihood of escalation
[[link removed]].”
He stressed that from the enemy’s point of view, Israel was at
“one of the weakest points since its establishment” and that
significant things were being said “in closed and professional
forums of security forces in Iran, Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.” This
letter also made no impression on Netanyahu, who continued to insist
on moving ahead with the judicial overhaul.

The response of the Prime Minister’s Office to these two letters
captures the kind of manipulation and lies that characterize
Netanyahu’s leadership of the state: “In contrast to what has been
reported, Prime Minister Netanyahu never was given any warning of
war.” To the contrary, the prime minister did get exacting warnings
about what tragically became true a few months later.

Netanyahu is responsible and also to blame for what happened on that
accursed Black Saturday
[[link removed]].
He failed in his most important duty, which is to ensure the security
of Israelis. At the end of the war, he will have to face a state
commission of inquiry and explain his failures. However, what we know
so far is already enough to justify ousting him from office and
preventing him from continuing to oversee a war that is largely the
consequence of his incompetence.

_The above article is Haaretz’s lead editorial, as published in the
Hebrew and English newspapers in Israel._

* Israel
[[link removed]]
* Israel-Gaza War
[[link removed]]
* Hamas
[[link removed]]
* Hostages
[[link removed]]
* Palestine
[[link removed]]
* Palestinians
[[link removed]]
* Gazans
[[link removed]]
* Gaza City
[[link removed]]
* West Bank
[[link removed]]
* Haaretz
[[link removed]]
* Benjamin Netanyahu
[[link removed]]

*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

 

 

 

INTERPRET THE WORLD AND CHANGE IT

 

 

Submit via web
[[link removed]]

Submit via email
Frequently asked questions
[[link removed]]

Manage subscription
[[link removed]]

Visit xxxxxx.org
[[link removed]]

Twitter [[link removed]]

Facebook [[link removed]]

 




[link removed]

To unsubscribe, click the following link:
[link removed]