What does it mean that Israel has known about Hamas’s plan for a year?

Israeli officials obtained Hamas’s battle plan for the October 7 attack more than a year before it took place. The scoop from: New York Times, It was based on documents, emails and interviews: military and intelligence leaders rejected the plan as ambitious, believing it to be too difficult for the Palestinian extremist movement to implement. The intelligence failure has been at the center of the Israeli public debate since the day of the massacre.

“Jericho Wall”

It is a document of approximately 40 pages, which Israeli officials codenamed “Jericho Wall”. He outlined, point by point, exactly the type of devastating invasion that killed nearly 1,200 people two months ago.

The date of the attack is not included in the documents reviewed by the New York newspaper. But what is striking is that it details a methodical offensive designed to destroy fortifications around the Gaza Strip, take control of Israeli cities and attack major military bases, including a division headquarters. Hamas followed this plan “with astonishing precision,” according to the newspaper.

The document begins with a quote from the Quran: “Surprise them from the gate. If you do this, you will surely win.” The same expression was used extensively by Hamas in its videos and statements starting from October 7. One of the most important goals stated in the document was the occupation of the Israeli military base in Re’im, where the Gaza division responsible for protecting the area is located. On October 7, Hamas attacked Re’im, overrunning parts of the base.

According to officials interviewed by the US newspaper, the audacity of the project made it easy to underestimate it. Experts estimated that even if Hamas had actually carried out an attack, it would have been able to muster a force of a few dozen militants rather than the hundreds that eventually attacked Israel. The document called for a barrage of rockets at the beginning of the attack, then for drones to disable security cameras and automatic machine guns along the border, and for armed men to descend on Israel en masse on paragliders, motorcycles and on foot: That’s right on October 7. What happened?

The plan also includes details on the location and size of Israeli military forces, communications centers and other sensitive information, and raises questions about how Hamas collects its intelligence and whether there are leaks within the security establishment.

The document was widely disseminated

This was not a “super secret” document, it did not fall into the hands of a single person. document continues New York TimesIt was widely circulated among Israeli military and intelligence leaders, but experts judged an attack of this scale and ambition to be beyond Hamas’ capabilities. However, it is unclear whether the document was also seen by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or other key political leaders.

After receiving the document in 2022, officials from the Israeli army’s Gaza division, responsible for protecting the border with the Strip, said Hamas’ intentions were unclear. The military assessment reviewed by the newspaper states, “It is not yet possible to determine whether the plan has been fully accepted and how it will be implemented.”

“This is not just a raid on the village”

Later in July 2023, an analyst reported that Hamas had conducted an intense and lengthy training exercise similar to the one outlined in the plan. But a colonel flatly dismissed his concerns, according to other encrypted emails viewed by police. New York Times. “I absolutely deny that the scenario is fictitious,” the analyst replied in the email exchange. He stated that Hamas’ training exercise was fully in line with “the content of the Jericho Wall plan.” “This is a plan designed to start a war, not just attack a village,” he warned. Unheard.

Hamas’ plan contained details

Hamas’s plan included precise details about the location and size of Israeli military forces, communications centers, and other sensitive information. To this day, it is not at all clear how the Palestinian movement was able to collect such data. Are there deep straits between Israeli forces? There is no certainty.

The only thing that is certain is that the Israeli army was completely unprepared for the most devastating attack Israel has suffered in its recent history. Approximately 1,200 people have died since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. 14,000 people killed in Gaza in Tel Aviv’s retaliatory campaign: 6,000 children.

“Israel will hunt Hamas leaders all over the world”

According to an article published today Wall Street Magazine Israel plans to hunt down Hamas leaders worldwide once the fighting in Gaza ends. Netanyahu allegedly ordered his spy agencies to prepare plans to target the group’s main leaders outside the Strip, particularly in Turkey, Qatar and other countries. Israel had already launched such a campaign to identify Palestinian terrorists involved in the Munich Olympics massacre in the 1970s.

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Source: Today IT

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