MK Gadi Eisenkot accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of leading Israel blindly to the October 7, 2023, disaster, citing a report published this morning that Netanyahu received a specific warning from UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed days before the massacre but did not update Israel's security chiefs.
MK Gadi Eisenkot, a former IDF chief of staff and current opposition leader, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday morning of leading Israel "blindly" to the October 7, 2023, disaster and of concealing a specific warning from UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed days before the Hamas massacre. Eisenkot also demanded the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into the decade leading up to the attack. His remarks followed a Haaretz investigation published at 07:21 Jerusalem that claimed Netanyahu received a direct warning from bin Zayed ten days before Oct. 7 but did not inform Israel's security chiefs.
The Haaretz report was immediately dismissed by Netanyahu's office as an "absolute lie." Within the same hour, former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett confirmed the report was true, accusing Netanyahu of "criminal negligence" and bearing "personal and direct responsibility" for the thousands of deaths. Opposition leader Yair Lapid also alleged that Netanyahu concealed the warning. Eisenkot's statement escalated the political controversy, with the former chief of staff himself facing criticism from right-wing figures who accuse him of championing the pre-war containment doctrine that enabled the attack, as The Zioneer has previously reported.
The Zioneer has also reported on the broader context of the Oct. 7 failures, including Netanyahu's claim that defense officials deliberately failed to wake him on the morning of the attack. The Haaretz investigation remains disputed, and no official confirmation of the alleged UAE warning has been provided. The Prime Minister's Office has not yet responded to Eisenkot's specific remarks.
9 developments
- DevelopingEisenkot: Netanyahu 'not worthy of the nation' after pushing division, evading conscription
- DevelopingNetanyahu claims defense officials 'deliberately' failed to wake him on Oct. 7 morning
- DevelopingFormer minister Gadi Eisenkot slams Netanyahu's statement as offering no real answers
- DevelopingEisenkot Challenges Netanyahu to Public Debate
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