Netanyahu to head panel determining scope of government-led October 7 probe — report

Opposition lawmakers denounce move as effort to ‘whitewash’ government’s failings; bill establishing commission set to advance Sunday

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will head the ministerial team that will determine the scope of a contentious government-led commission of inquiry into the October 7, 2023, Hamas onslaught, Hebrew media outlets reported on Thursday.

The reported decision would give the prime minister wide influence over the direction of the investigative panel proposed by the government instead of the independent state inquiry demanded by the public.

It was met with swift denunciation from political opponents of Netanyahu, who accused the premier of trying to “whitewash” his responsibility for the failures leading up to and during the savage terrorist assault and atrocities, the deadliest attack in Israel’s history.

Cabinet ministers were informed of the decision to put Netanyahu at the head of a panel via a message Thursday morning, the Ynet news outlet reported. The ministerial committee will convene for the first time on Monday, according to the report. It was unclear from reports who sent the message.

A spokesperson for the prime minister did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Setting the mandate of the commission will be crucial in determining whether the investigation includes tracing the roots of the Hamas attack two years ago to the 2005 decision to withdraw from Gaza and alleged judicial interference in security matters, as government and coalition representatives have argued that it must. Critics fear that the commission could paper over the impact of decisions by Netanyahu and various governments he has headed since 2009, including freeing the architect of the massacre, Yahya Sinwar, and helping prop up Hamas rule in exchange for calm.

Netanyahu has proposed setting up a government inquest rather than a state commission of inquiry, arguing that the latter would lack public buy-in and be seen as politically biased despite its independence from the government.

Even under the long-established state commission of inquiry format, the government would determine its mandate, although the members of the commission are appointed by the president of the Supreme Court and the panel itself is usually chaired by a retired Supreme Court justice.

A government-backed bill to establish the new type of commission of inquiry will be brought to a vote in the Ministerial Committee for Legislation on Sunday, to formally grant coalition support for the measure.

Under the terms of that bill, the ministerial committee reportedly set to be headed by Netanyahu would set the mandate and parameters for the commission of inquiry.

The members of the committee would be jointly appointed by the coalition and opposition, but opposition parties have stated that they will not cooperate with an effort to establish such a body, accusing the government of trying to obfuscate its responsibility for the failures leading to the unprecedented invasion and the subsequent atrocities.

The bill, proposed by Likud MK Ariel Kallner, creates a so-called “state-national commission of inquiry” to comprise either six or seven members.

In response to the reports that Netanyahu would head the ministerial committee to determine the commission’s mandate, head of the Democrats party Yair Golan tweeted sarcastically that Netanyahu might as well “write the verdict straight away,” and accused the prime minister of trying to shirk responsibility for his role in the October 7 failings.

“The man responsible for the greatest disaster in our history isn’t looking for answers, he’s looking for an alibi. This committee won’t investigate failures — it will investigate how to pin the blame on the army, on the protest movement, or even on the kibbutz members,” wrote Golan, referring to those near the Gaza border that were overrun on October 7. “The mandate is clear: to whitewash the leader and cling to power by force.”

Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman tweeted a Hebrew phrase meaning “a guilty conscience gives itself away” while Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party announced that it will bring a motion to the Knesset State Control Committee on Monday to require the government to establish a state commission of inquiry.

Establishing the government’s proposed committee would be both “a blow to security” and an offense to the families of the victims of October 7, said Gantz. ”In the face of this disgrace, we will continue to insist that the failure be investigated, the lessons learned, and the truth brought to light.”

Netanyahu proposed the government commission several months ago as the war in Gaza drew to an apparent close. Throughout the war, he had argued that any investigation into the massacre must wait until after fighting ended in response to loud public demands for a state commission of inquiry.

Also Thursday, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara recommended to the High Court of Justice that State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman’s investigation into the core issues and causes of the failures leading up to and after the October 7 attacks could prejudice whatever commission of inquiry is ultimately established.

Her position was submitted in the framework of petitions to the High Court demanding Englman cease his investigation, arguing that it is not the place of the state comptroller to investigate the matter.

Critics of the government, including members of the opposition and several government watchdog groups, have also expressed concern that the probe by Englman, who has no legal background and was appointed to his position under a Netanyahu-led government, could seek to minimize political responsibility for the devastating October 7 onslaught.

Englman has repeatedly criticized the army and the Shin Bet for failing to cooperate with his investigation, and in January this year he accused the military of “intimidating” senior officers giving testimony to his staff, which he said was part of the IDF’s efforts to stop “the truth from being disclosed.”