The October Council, representing bereaved families of the October 7 massacre, responded sharply to the Knesset's first reading of the bill for a political commission of inquiry, saying the move deepens the national wound. Their statement comes after the bill passed with 59 votes in favor and an opposition boycott.
The October Council, a group representing families of victims and missing persons from the October 7, 2023 massacre, reacted sharply Monday evening to the Knesset's first-reading passage of the bill for a political commission of inquiry, calling it a 'second tearing' of the national wound. In a statement carried by Ynet, the group said: 'For you this is a first reading, for us it is a second tearing' — amplifying outcry from other bereaved-family groups that have already labeled the proposed commission a 'whitewash committee.'
The bill passed first reading at 21:27 Jerusalem time with 59 coalition votes and no opposition support (the opposition boycotted), as The Zioneer first reported at that time. By 21:43 Jerusalem, The Zioneer had reported October Council founder Rafi Ben Shitrit calling the commission 'a mark of shame on the forehead of a government.' By 21:48, opposition leaders MK Avigdor Liberman and MK Gadi Eisenkot had also denounced the legislation, with Liberman calling it a 'whitewash committee' designed to sabotage the truth. The bill now moves to committee preparation for second and third readings.
The legislation has been in the works for weeks: as The Zioneer reported on Saturday June 13, the bill was expected to go to a preliminary vote that week; on Sunday June 7, the Constitution Committee announced it would proceed despite renewed fighting. The coalition pushes a political commission it can control, while bereaved families and the opposition demand a state commission of inquiry with a broader mandate — a rift The Zioneer has tracked throughout.
It remains unclear when the second and third readings will be scheduled. The opposition's public rejection of the commission's legitimacy leaves open the question of whether any commission formed under the current bill will be seen as credible by the public or the judicial system.
4 developments
- DevelopingBill for political commission of inquiry into October 7 set for first reading this week
- DevelopingConstitution Committee to Vote on Political Inquiry Law for October 7 Amid Renewed Fighting
- StrongOctober Council founder: Political commission a 'whitewash committee' after Knesset passes bill
- DevelopingLiberman calls political commission of inquiry 'whitewash committee' after first-reading passage; Eisenkot also reacts
Source and signal
- Internal intake