IDF officer dismissed over affair later appointed to Oct. 7 failures investigation

Colonel A, dismissed for an affair, joins the October 7 massacre probe. Ben Caspit criticizes, stressing military readiness per Unit 8200's warning on intelligence failures.

 The destruction caused by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, November 21, 2023.  (photo credit: Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
The destruction caused by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, November 21, 2023.
(photo credit: Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

A, who was recently dismissed after his affair with one of his subordinates was revealed, is participating in the internal investigation team of the intelligence in the Southern Command to examine the situation on the eve of the massacre, N12 reported on Monday.

According to N12, Colonel A. - from the Southern Command - was a central figure in the failures of October 7 and is now appointed to the investigation team.

In response to the appointment, Ben Caspit tweeted on the social media platform X: "If the commander of the Southern Command, one of the architects of the unfathomable intelligence failure of October 7, who was recently removed after it became clear that he had an affair with a commanding officer, is indeed participating in the internal investigation team … then someone in the IDF is confused, or freaked out, or lost his mind.”

Caspit then pointed out Ofer Hadad’s N12 report that Colonel A was one of the main figures responsible for the intelligence failure and asked how Colonel A could be appointed to investigate the failure.

Caspit writes regarding October 7

Ben Caspit is an Israeli journalist and commentator. His area of expertise is political/security, and diplomatic at Maariv, and he also hosts a daily show on FM103 on the radio. On February 26, Caspit posted an article on The Jerusalem Post website discussing the failures of October 7.

Ben Caspit (credit: ALONI MOR)
Ben Caspit (credit: ALONI MOR)

In his report, Caspit claimed that the IDF intelligence unit commander’s message regarding maintaining military readiness - which was given two weeks before the massacre - “is haunting in retrospect.” The report then focuses on the commander’s message and the IDF’s 8200 intelligence unit.

The IDF's Unit 8200, known for producing many successful individuals who contribute to Israel's technology sector, before posting the unit commander’s letter, Caspit shares that he received numerous messages expressing "sorrow over the failure," "affection for the unit," "suggestions for improvement," and "criticisms."

He then explains that the letter from Unit 8200 commander Y, dated September 24, 2023, just before the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, warned about the dangers of intelligence failures and emphasized the unit's mission to provide early warnings for war, a mission that had failed during the Yom Kippur War. 

Caspit claims that the letter serves as a chilling reminder of the ongoing importance of readiness and vigilance in intelligence operations.