Netanyahu’s Government Bears Heavy Responsibility for October 7 — The article argues that the Israeli government, led by Netanyahu, failed in its most basic duty to protect citizens, with policies that strengthened Hamas and left the country catastrophically unprepared for the attack.

Lack of Accountability Persists — Despite the scale of the failure, Netanyahu refuses to accept responsibility, blaming others and resisting an independent state commission of inquiry, while the defense minister and security chiefs who did take responsibility stepped down.

The Response Has Been Morally and Strategically Flawed — The prolonged military campaigns, disproportionate force, and lack of a credible political exit strategy have caused massive civilian suffering, deepened Israel’s international isolation, and failed to deliver decisive victory, leaving the country in a state of prolonged trauma and insecurity.

To mark 1,000 days since the horrific surprise attack on Israeli border communities near the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023, many thousands of Israelis took to the streets in protest. Others visited the affected communities to pay their respects in silent vigils, carrying photographs of those killed as a reminder that the worst failure in the country’s history has a face, indeed many faces, of lives suddenly and cruelly cut short.

Common to these gatherings was a unified call for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry to investigate the failures of the government on the day of the Hamas attack, which left almost 1,200 people dead and 251 taken hostage in Gaza, as well as the conflicts on multiple fronts that followed. Yet the failure did not end on Oct. 7. More than 1,000 days later, it continues to haunt the country through a deep collective trauma and Israel’s prolonged involvement in fighting on seven fronts, with scarcely any respite. This has left little room for the country to reflect, draw lessons from what led to Oct. 7, assess what has happened since, and determine how to ensure such a catastrophe never happens again.

It needs little explanation why the current........

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