Netanyahu is currently again widely reported to be considering firing Gallant.
The Channel 12 report also said Israel has had “dozens” of clear-cut opportunities to assassinate Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in recent years, but chose not to act for fear of sparking a major war.
It also said several intelligence officers spent the night of October 6 last year on “high alert” at IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv, successfully dealing with a “significant” threat from Gaza unrelated to the Hamas massacre. The Hamas invasion, which IDF intel had not foreseen, began early on October 7.
In an investigative feature tracing what it described as the erosion of Israel’s deterrent capabilities against both Hezbollah and Hamas, the report cited as a significant milestone in that erosion a March 13, 2023, roadside bombing by the Hezbollah infiltrator at Megiddo Junction, some 70 kilometers from the northern border, and Israel’s response to the bombing. The explosion narrowly missed a passing bus and badly injured the driver of a passing car. The Hezbollah terrorist was killed.
The report said IDF intelligence officials had information ahead of the planned infiltration but believed it had been called off. As it turned out, the infiltrator had scaled the border fence with a ladder on March 10 and made his way deeper into Israel.
After the highly unusual bombing, the report said, senior IDF officers including Northern Command chief Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin recommended that Israel respond forcefully, with an airstrike on a Hezbollah target, regarding the Hezbollah attack as a significant escalation.
IDF Intelligence Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva favored a “lukewarm” response, for fear of an escalation into war. IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi backed the more forceful approach. READ MORE
