Netanyahu Reportedly Rejected Plan to Eliminate Hamas Leader Before Oct. 7
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly declined a recommendation from the head of the Shin Bet security agency, Ronen Bar, to conduct a targeted assassination of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other senior figures in Gaza less than a week before the October 7th attacks. According to a security source cited by the newspaper Maariv, Bar informed Netanyahu that Hamas was preparing for "something extreme," using the term "earthquake" to describe the situation. The source confirmed that Netanyahu received this information and the recommendation to act but did not approve it. Recent reports on this matter are said to be accurate.
However, security officials have pushed back against the notion that timely notification to the prime minister or defense minister on the night of October 6-7 could have guaranteed a different outcome. Sources within the security establishment stated that the intelligence available to the Shin Bet and Aman military intelligence that night was incomplete, failing to clearly indicate Hamas's offensive intentions. Some information even suggested a continuation of normal life in Gaza, offering no definitive grounds to anticipate a large-scale attack in the immediate hours.
Security officials also argued that even if Netanyahu or the defense minister had been involved at that stage, the process of political-military assessment, forming a complete intelligence picture, and making decisions would have taken time. Consequently, any discussion would likely have occurred just before the attack commenced. A security source familiar with the events of that night refuted Netanyahu's assertion that receiving information during the night would have enabled him to take actions that could have altered the situation on the ground.
Previously, Cursor reported that Benjamin Netanyahu categorically denied claims that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed had warned him approximately a week and a half before the October 7th tragedy about a large-scale terrorist attack being prepared by Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar against Israel.
