Failure and slaughter: IDF's Be'eri probe shows army's colossal errors, residents' bravery
https://www.timesofisrael.com/failure-and-slaughter-idfs-beeri-probe-shows-armys-colossal-errors-residents-bravery/
Failure and slaughter: IDFs Beeri probe shows armys colossal errors, residents bravery
Investigation into Oct. 7 Hamas invasion of kibbutz, where 101 civilians and 31 security personnel died, finds disastrous response by military amid battle against hundreds of terrorists
By EMANUEL FABIAN FOLLOW
11 July 2024, 7:01 pm
On the morning of October 7, 2023, hundreds of terrorists swarmed into the unsuspecting Gaza border community of Kibbutz Beeri, in what would become one of the deadliest killing grounds amid the Hamas-led terror onslaught, and the worst attack on a single community.
Residents were left to fend for themselves for long hours, with the army stunned by the shock attack on dozens of towns and in utter disarray failing to come to their rescue as terrorists moved from home to home, kidnapping, brutalizing and massacring civilians well into the afternoon.
[...]
The Beeri probe was aimed at drawing specific operational conclusions for the military. It did not examine a wider picture of the militarys perception of Gaza and Hamas in recent years, which is to be covered in separate, larger, investigations into the IDFs intelligence and defenses. The army is also not looking at policies as set by the political leadership, in a bid to avoid a fight with government leaders who have insisted such investigations must wait until after the war against Hamas ends.
The probe concluded that the IDF failed in its mission to protect the residents of Kibbutz Beeri, largely since the military had never prepared for such an event an Israeli community being captured by terrorists, as well as a widescale attack in numerous towns and army bases simultaneously by thousands of terrorists.
[...]