A large-scale dress rehearsal by Hamas for its Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of southern Israel was missed by Israeli intelligence agencies, Hebrew media reported on Tuesday.
Information regarding the drill was obtained from a Hamas protocol recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza, and was confirmed by captured Hamas prisoners and senior Israeli security officials, according to Channel 12 News.
The drill was orchestrated and overseen by Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif, and involved Hamas operatives assembling at designated points, primarily mosques. Following the exercise, Hamas’s Supreme Military Council concluded it was a “great success” and that Israel’s failure to detect it had confirmed the group was ready to carry out a surprise attack.
There have been a series of recent disclosures regarding the intelligence failures that led up to the Oct. 7 massacre. For example, reports indicate that the Israel Defense Forces had knowledge of Hamas’s plan to take 200 hostages weeks before the attack, but failed to act on this information. Additionally, critical IDF intelligence systems were reportedly down on the morning of the attack, further compromising Israel’s preparedness.
In April, Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva, head of the IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate, announced his resignation, becoming the first senior figure to step down over the Oct. 7 failures. In September, Brig. Gen. Yossi Sariel, who served as commander of the IDF’s Unit 8200 intelligence branch, became the second intelligence officer to step down.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has also frozen two IDF promotions pending an investigation into the intelligence lapses.
