The Israel Defense Forces’ Unit 8200 issued a warning a day before the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel that, according to protocol, should have put the entire Gaza border sector on high alert, Hebrew media reported on Monday.
But the vaunted intelligence unit, stationed at the Home Front Command’s Southern District base, about 10 miles away from the Gaza border, sent the warning via email instead of making a call, according to Israel’s Channel 12 News.
The report did not specify the content of the warning, but noted it involved the activation of a component related to a “certain, highly significant type of weaponry in the northern Gaza Strip.”
Unit 8200 moreover had noticed that Hamas was emptying warehouses and that operatives were moving around the area in operational activity—the sort of development that suggests the possibility of a surprise attack, according to Channel 12.
A similar warning issued a month and a half before the Hamas-led onslaught did not fall on deaf ears, and resulted in the entire sector being put on high alert, the report continued.
In contrast, the email sent on Oct. 6, 2023, was apparently not opened by anyone.
Additional “indicative signs” were detected on Friday night, but the situational assessments of the local division, Southern Command and the chief of staff did not incorporate the email warning, according to Channel 12.
The report added that senior IDF officers believe that the attack would not have been launched on that day had the sector been put on high alert.
In addition, intelligence reports gathered earlier that week identified some Hamas weaponry activity, but the Gaza Division’s intelligence officer chose to classify it as “inventory-taking and preparation for a Hamas propaganda video,” according to Channel 12.
This officer has since been relieved of duty.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit responded to the report, saying that the military “has conducted and presented an extensive series of in-depth investigations into the events of the morning of Oct. 7, and the night preceding it. The IDF has presented the findings to the families, the victims, the relevant decision-makers, the media, and the public. The investigations included lessons and insights, and the IDF in general—and Unit 8200 in particular—is working to implement them.”
