Netanyahu Clarifies Wife's Remarks, Calls Oct. 7 Failure Not Betrayal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed comments made by his wife, Sara Netanyahu, during a recent interview, stating that the events of October 7th constituted a failure, not a betrayal. In a video posted to Instagram, Netanyahu explained that the failure occurred the night before and morning of the attack, when intelligence indicated an impending Hamas assault, but a decision was made not to wake him or launch a preemptive strike due to a miscalculation aimed at not provoking Hamas. He emphasized that such events, while failures, do happen.

Sara Netanyahu's remarks, made in an interview with Channel 14, had suggested that Yair Golan, chairman of the Democrats party, was aware of the October 7th attack in advance, even before the Prime Minister. She claimed Golan was dressed and ready early that morning, while others, including the Prime Minister, were unaware. The interview, presented as personal rather than political, was accompanied by an advisor to the Prime Minister and the Likud party, Topaz Luk. The Likud party received and approved the raw footage before the edited interview aired, indicating that Sara Netanyahu's statement about Golan was part of a Likud campaign.

In response to Sara Netanyahu's allegations, Yair Golan sent a legal notice threatening defamation proceedings. Sara Netanyahu's lawyers responded with a counter-threat of legal action. The notice from Golan's legal team demanded a public and unequivocal apology from Sara Netanyahu within 24 hours, along with a financial settlement to be donated to survivors of the Nova music festival. Failure to comply would result in legal action seeking at least 2.5 million shekels. The proposed apology text stated that her previous remarks were false and baseless, asserting that Golan responded to the Hamas attack by heading to the Gaza border with his weapon, risking his life to save young people from the Nova festival, and that he learned of the attack like all other Israelis at 6:29 AM on October 7th.