The Israeli army intends to begin presenting investigations into the events of October 7 as of next week

The Israeli army announced Sunday evening, that it intends to begin presenting investigations into the events of October 7, 2023, starting next week, according to the Israeli Army Radio.

The Israeli Army Radio correspondent reported that the investigations will be presented over the course of a full week, from Wednesday, February 26, until the end of Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi’s term a week later.

He explained that initially, the Israeli army will present general investigations into the strategic vision towards the Gaza Strip in recent years, the development of intelligence information related to Hamas, the decision-making mechanism on the night of October 6, and the management of the battles to confront the attack.

After that, detailed investigations will be presented about the main battles in the Gaza envelope settlements, including the kibbutzim of Kfar Aza, Nahal Oz, Nir Oz, Netiv Ha’asara, the military base in Nahal Oz, and the Nova concert.

According to the Israeli Army Radio, the rest of the battle investigations a total of 41 investigations will be presented during the month of March.

It’s noteworthy that the Israeli army is presenting these investigations after a delay of half a year, as it had previously committed to presenting them by July 2024.

The Israeli army leadership justifies this delay by the operational circumstances and developments of the war, which led to the postponement of the ability to present the investigations.

The Israeli Army Radio correspondent reported that the investigations won’t include personal conclusions against any officer, and no blame will be directed at any of the parties involved.

Chief of Staff Halevi will summarize the investigations, but he will leave the issue of making personal decisions regarding the officers to his successor, Eyal Zamir.

The Israeli government approved the appointment of Eyal Zamir as Chief of Staff of the Army, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his admiration for his offensive approach, noting that “the face of the Middle East will change during his term”.

A joint statement issued Sunday evening by Netanyahu and his Defense Minister, Israel Katz, confirmed that the approval of Zamir’s appointment as Chief of Staff came as the culmination of a professional and meticulous selection process, and reflects the great confidence in his rich experience in leading the Israeli army at the present time.

The statement pointed out that, according to the decision, Zamir will assume his duties as Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army on March 5, succeeding Herzi Halevi.

“Even when Eyal Zamir was my military secretary, I was impressed by his commitment to the country, his commitment to the IDF, and his offensive approach,” Netanyahu said in the statement.

“I support and push with both hands, along with the Minister of Defense, for the appointment of Eyal Zamir as the new Chief of Staff of the IDF,” he added.

He continued, “I hope that during his term, and perhaps in the near future as well, we will achieve all the great accomplishments that will change not only the situation of Israel, but the face of the entire Middle East as well”.

The Israeli Minister of Security stated in the same statement that appointing Eyal Zamir as Chief of Staff comes at a time when we are facing many security challenges.

He added, “Israel needs a strong, victorious army, and I am convinced of Eyal Zamir’s ability to lead the army to decisive victories on all fronts.”

He continued, “I am confident that he will lead the Israeli army with wisdom and responsibility, and will work to implement the lessons learned from the events of October 7, with the aim of strengthening the army, and his success is our success”.

This comes as Halevi, whose term is about to end, intends to complete the ongoing investigations in the Israeli army regarding the October 7, 2023 attack, and present them to the public within the next two weeks.

The investigations include an investigation into the October 7 battles in every area in the “Gaza envelope,” in addition to the broader investigation into the intelligence failure and the night before the outbreak of the war.

On the 21st of last month, Halevi announced in a statement his resignation from his position, and that he informed the Minister of Security, Israel Katz, that he requested to end his term by the upcoming March 6, and he also demanded the formation of an external investigation committee into the failures of October 7.

Halevi justified his resignation by saying that it came out of recognition of the failure of the Israeli army on October 7, at a point in time when the Israeli army had achieved great accomplishments and was in the process of implementing the agreement to free the detainees.

Halevi’s resignation came amid tense relations between him and the Israeli government, especially Katz, who rejected decisions taken by Halevi, including issuing orders to Halevi to end military investigations into the army’s failures on October 7, not to rotate positions in the army, and not to appoint officers with the ranks of brigadier general and brigadier general to new positions.

Israeli experts and analysts had pinned their hopes on Zamir to succeed in getting the Israeli army out of its crisis, describing him as an expert general and the most experienced of the two other candidates for the position.

Although the Israeli army has recorded not a few operational successes during the past year and a half, the continuation of the war without a clear goal, the absence of a political plan that gives military action a result and purpose for its end, and the failure of the military leadership through delaying investigations and drawing responsibility for the failure of October 7, all of this has led to unprecedented physical, moral and mental erosion.