Bereaved family members turned their backs on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in protest during the Monday Knesset’s 40-signature debate on establishing a state commission of inquiry into the government’s handling of the October 7 massacre.
Netanyahu spoke against Israel’s current method of forming a state commission of inquiry, which entails a probe that operates independently of the political echelon, with members appointed by the Supreme Court.
“The question is not only what we investigate, the crucial question is who investigates the truth,” Netanyahu said.
He also called on Israel to mirror the method of inquiry that the US used following the 9/11 attacks.
“We want to establish an inquiry committee on October 7 that will be balanced and that will earn the broadest possible public trust,” Netanyahu said, calling for a different body to head the commission of inquiry.
“Not a committee that half the nation rejects, not one whose conclusions half the nation believes are prewritten.”
The bereaved families who attended the debate in the plenum’s viewing section then began turning their backs to Netanyahu in response to his remarks.
Netanyahu did not address the issue of a state commission of inquiry for approximately the first 20 minutes of his speech.
Opposition MKs were removed from the plenum for criticizing Netanyahu when he did not initially bring up the state commission of inquiry.
Inquiry into events surrounding October 7 blocked
An inquiry into the events surrounding October 7 has repeatedly been blocked by the political echelon despite polls showing huge public support for this type of investigation, which has been pushed by victims of the attacks and their families. A state commission of inquiry has the power to subpoena witnesses and make personal recommendations regarding individuals.
“The commission of inquiry we will advance will be based on a structure representing all sectors of the people, or at least the vast majority,” Netanyahu said.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) slammed Netanyahu during his subsequent remarks at the plenum.
“Under your watch, no one takes responsibility. No one says, ‘I’m sorry,’ or ‘I’m ashamed,’ or ‘this is terrible.’ I know that if I’m the head of the system, the responsibility is mine,” he said.
“Make no mistake. We have not forgotten, and we will never forget. Not us, not our children, and not our children’s children,” Lapid said. “Everyone who held a leadership position on October 7, 2023, cannot and will never be able to remove from themselves the responsibility and the blame.”
The Knesset’s debate was based on a law that if 40 MKs sign a request, it is permitted to arrange a debate on a certain issue, and the prime minister is required to attend.
Yesh Atid initiated the 40-signature debate, titled “Establishing a State Commission of Inquiry into the Failures of October 7.”
Netanyahu sat in the plenum seating area as opposition MKs spoke on an urgent need for a state commission of inquiry, while bereaved families in the plenum viewing section above could be heard clapping and holding pictures up of their lost loved ones.
Yesh Atid MK Ron Katz slammed Netanyahu during the opening remarks, “Why are you doing everything to run away from the truth?”
“For once, take responsibility. If you keep running away, history will remember,” he said.
Yesh Atid MK Merav Ben Ari told Netanyahu, “Look into the eyes of the people who came here.”
Democrats MK Naama Lazimi told the plenum: “I blame you, Netanyahu.... You forgot what it is to be Jewish.
“You won’t defeat the bereaved families,” she said.
Ahead of the plenum session, members of the October Council, which is made up of hundreds of families affected by the October 7 Hamas attacks, spoke on the urgency of a state commission of inquiry.
“We will look the prime minister in the eyes and demand a state commission of inquiry,” said Rafi Ben Shitrit, whose son, St.-Sgt. Alroy, fell in battle on October 7.
Dave, father of Ilay, who fell in battle in Gaza, said at an earlier press conference that
Netanyahu does not want a state commission of inquiry, and one will not occur while he is still prime minister.
“Don’t let any spin confuse you, he [Netanyahu] wants to get to the next elections without an investigation,” he said. “The intention is clear: to drown us in the next argument over identity instead of facing the real questions about what happened.”
Eliav Breuer contributed to this report.