[IMPORTANT] Hamas launches foot assault against settlements.

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The Israel Defense Forces’ lack of a plan to handle a massive Hamas assault on the country contributed to its slow and inefficient response to the October 7 attacks, The New York Times reported Saturday, in a story focused on the military’s operational failures as the attack unfolded.

The investigative report was based on interviews with current and former soldiers, officers and officials, some of whom spoke anonymously.

“There was no defense plan for a surprise attack,” Amir Avivi, a former deputy head of the Gaza Division, told the paper, while former national security adviser Yaakov Amidror added: “The army does not prepare itself for things it thinks are impossible.”

The New York Times report paints a picture of a military that for too long on the day failed to understand the scale of the attack, sending teams that were ill-equipped to deal with a mass assault. As the military grappled with the unfathomable situation playing out in southern Israel, the first troop deployment occurred at 7:43 a.m. — over an hour into the Hamas invasion — when orders were issued for all emergency forces to move south.

The report also highlighted Hamas’s attack on the IDF’s Gaza Division base at Re’im as key to the assault’s success. With gunmen raiding the base, the besieged soldiers and commanders found themselves trying to defend it instead of leading the larger combat effort.

Maj. Gen. (res.) Yom Tov Samia, a former head of the military’s Southern Command, decried the untenable concentration of the division command as well as the command centers for both Gaza brigades at the same base, meaning that a single effective assault by Hamas terrorists crippled the entire command structure responsible for coordinating all military activity in the region.

The report noted that military intelligence was aware of a long-time Hamas goal to take out this central base, but the IDF did not believe the terror group was capable of mounting such an effort.

Lacking clear directives or orders, many units as well as reservist soldiers resorted to using TV news and apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram to glean information on targets and locations in need of assistance.

The horrific situation in the south brought a rare order from the head of the Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic security agency, at 9 a.m. in which he told “all combat-trained, weapons-carrying employees to go south.”

The report noted that adding to the lack of preparedness along the Gaza border, two commando companies of over 100 soldiers had been moved to the West Bank on October 5, during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.

“In practice, there wasn’t the right defensive preparation, no practice, and no equipping and building strength for such an operation,” Maj. Gen. Samia told The New York Times.

Other interviewees said that the only protocols in place for mobilization in the advent of an incursion were aimed at deployment within 24 hours, under the assumption that troops would be forewarned through military intelligence.

Many soldiers rushed south of their own volition, among them Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram, head of the 99th Infantry Division, who told Israeli media that he received messages from soldiers, including, “Come save us,” “Send the army, quickly, they are killing us,” and “Sorry we’re turning to you, we’re already out of weapons.” Many soldiers left their homes relatively lightly armed, unprepared for the full-on battle that awaited them in the south.

Even at the elite Maglan commando unit, a mere 25 minutes from Gaza, the Times was told there were no “concrete missions,” with troops simply told to “just take a gun” and “save people.”

The Jewish holiday of Sukkot also added to the downgrade in preparedness. While there were three infantry battalions and one tank battalion positioned along Gaza’s border, stated the report, a senior military officer estimated that perhaps half of the 1,500 soldiers were away.

For those forces heading south, further significant delays were caused by Hamas’s ability to swiftly take control of highways in the region and set up ambushes on the key roads leading south, attacking troops as they arrived and causing forces to halt their advance toward communities in need.

The military’s performance since it began its offensive in Gaza has been generally praised in Israel, with fewer losses than initially anticipated while facing Hamas’s long-prepared deadly urban battlefield within Gaza’s cities, with their vast arrays of tunnels, booby-trapped buildings and ambush traps. Israel has racked up significant military achievements in the two-month ground offensive so far.

But the country is widely expected to launch a massive investigation into the intelligence, policy and operational failures that enabled October 7’s atrocities to occur when the war in Gaza concludes.

Soberly and solemnly, hundreds of protesters poured into Habima Square in Tel Aviv on Saturday night to demonstrate against the government and call for immediate elections over the management of the ongoing war in Gaza and the failure so far to secure the release of the remaining hostages.

In one of the first major, explicitly anti-government protests since the war began on October 7, demonstrators for “elections now” flocked to the central Tel Aviv square many bearing banners that were highly antagonistic toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hardline coalition, as well as the war in Gaza.

“The cry of mothers: Get our soldiers out of Gaza now,” read one banner, while another called for “A diplomatic agreement.” Yet another protester held a banner declaring “Israel will not survive if we don’t bring him down.”

Down the road from Habima, families and other supporters gathered for an 11th straight week at the renamed Hostages’ Square outside the Tel Aviv Art Museum to call for the release of those being held in Gaza. Despite increasingly vocal criticism of the government over the lack of an agreement for their release, organizers have taken pains to keep the demonstrations apolitical.

At Saturday’s protest in Tel Aviv, numerous demonstrators brought Israeli flags from the anti-judicial overhaul movement of the pre-October 7 era, lending the demonstration a distinct anti-government feel that has been absent from most major demonstrations since the atrocities committed by Hamas almost three months ago.

Guy Ginat, a protester from Rehovot, held a banner in English with the words “You bring us death and say ‘that’s life,’” referencing a remark made by Netanyahu last month after an an armed civilian who stopped a deadly terror attack in Jerusalem was mistakenly shot dead by a soldier

The protest was organized by several groups, including the anti-government protest organization Hofshi Israel as well as some bereaved families from the current war.

Among the speakers were Ofri Zur, whose brother Amir Zur was killed during the Hamas-led assault on Kibbutz Kfar Aza, and Maj. Gen. (res.) Guy Tzur, the former head of the IDF Southern Command, while the event was hosted by Gal Pihovitz, the mother of a combat soldier currently fighting in Gaza.

A central exhibition at Habima Square commemorated the victims of the October 7 atrocities and said, “Not in vain, we promise.”

Despite the fact that many of the protesters in the heart of liberal, progressive Tel Aviv did not appear particularly enthusiastic about any potential winners of the election they were calling for, those who spoke with this reporter nevertheless felt that the likely winners would be an improvement on the current government.

oh boy..this is just showing how dramatically dangerous this situation is going ( getting) to be..
( Side Note)
And am just imagining all the people , whom are jewish and are big in the media empire of which , i have been made aware of many ,are probably giving ""movie extras""
that are out of work .. jobs ..To go to locations outside of US gov. buildings to stand around as protesters ?
I do not know of any Jewish people personally , that I have known over the years claim, that they are willing to stand around outside all day of a building . With no home amenities , Or big screen TV or frig, ...Even Israelis that I have know,whom have become Americanized . Never have mentioned or demostrated any interest in personally doing protests . Personally have been part of several civil rights protests in this country. .. .! , So who are the people supporting these activities in Palestine ? in the USA ? ..$orry just frustrated

The US went through such phase historically; progressive North vs backward Southern Confederate filled with crazy religious dogma.
Except in our case, the backward Southern Hezbollah state is far stronger militarily.

I don’t think South Koreans can coexist with North Koreans anymore in a same democratic nation; despite them being the same people, sharing same ancient history and language.
It would take generations of “de-brainwashing” of Northerns perhaps.
In some cases, partition is really the best way possible.

As your anecdote shows there are idiots on both sides in this conflict. I think we have all at some point met similar fanatics on the Israeli side. I think the solution to this conflict is to brake the cycle of "revenge" by taking away the power from the feuding parts and hand it over to the UN. This means that the US has to step down and let justice has its way. With boots on the ground UN could prevent the Palestinians from throwing stones or making more serious attacks against the Israelis while simultaneously stop the Israeli harresements, shootings of civivilian Palestinians, collective punishment and the destruction of water supplies etc.

And by the way , do have immediate family members , whom are Screen Actor Guild members .

While I would like to believe that the vast majority of Palestinians want to live in peace, I also believe that people who have nothing, have nothing to lose by joining anti-Israeli groups like Hamas or Hezbollah.

[...]

The families of suicide bombers were paid death benefits of $25,000. To people whose monthly income averages $250, this was a veritable fortune.

[...]

In a country with such a high poverty rate, Hamas may be the "only game in town" for many unemployed Palestinians. This group earns about $450 million annually from taxes levied in Gaza as well as worldwide business interests that include charitable contributions. It's likely that as with Hezbollah, they are receiving Iranian funding.

As bad as things were in Gaza before the current conflict began, things will be even worse now. An estimated 100,000 buildings have either been destroyed or damaged. What little infrastructure there was has likely also been damaged. Who will pay for the cost of rebuilding?

Although I spent 8 years in the Middle East, I don't claim to have any great amount of wisdom. Having said this, I don't think the two state solution will work. I do think that poverty, despair, hatred, and resentment are all fertile breeding grounds for tomorrow's terrorists.

In order for peace to prevail, I think people have to have some hope for the future; that their lives and the lives of their children will be better tomorrow than it is today. As it is, the vast majority of the Palestinians in Gaza are mired in a never ending cycle of poverty.

Why was the book banned?

Does UNRWA money go to governments? Shouldn't it go directly to administration of refugee camps?

Often the ruling powers on the ground put their hands on the boxes and sell them.

And if it’s cash, it evaporates fast.

Often the ruling powers on the ground put their hands on the boxes and sell them.

And if it’s cash, it evaporates fast.

Jakki, Mona asked a relevant question about what you'd posted - it was neither an attack, nor was something taken out of context. Your quoted statement was clear and it's being fairly questioned.

And responded too..! the original post had certain lines removed that .. made my post appear as a out of context situation / sentences , imho ! , reading the original posting including exclaimation points and question marks , might have allowed her better understanding of what was written .

And having relatives in the entertainment industry . Might have allowed some understanding of information that was shared with me . From immediate relatives .
Regarding peoples involved in some protests .