Israel Received Warnings of Major Hamas Operation Before Oct. 7

Retired Colonel Doron Hadar, former commander of the IDF General Staff's negotiation unit, revealed that Israel received messages from mediators involved in communications with Hamas prior to October 7. These messages warned that a stalemate in negotiations could prompt Hamas to carry out a significant operation to alter the status quo. Hadar, who participated in talks concerning hostages held by Hamas before the attack, stated in an interview that the prevailing assessment among negotiators was that the absence of a deal would compel Hamas to take a game-changing step.

He explained that the understanding was that without a hostage deal, Hamas would have no choice but to take action to break the deadlock and change its situation, a perspective held before the October 7 attack. Hadar added that over the years, Israel had received communications from various mediators indicating that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was considering a large-scale kidnapping operation to gain leverage.

According to Hadar, these messages were not specific warnings about the timing or nature of an attack. Instead, they conveyed an assessment that the ongoing impasse in hostage negotiations could lead Hamas leadership to take more dangerous actions. These statements emerge amidst growing public debate in Israel regarding warnings Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu allegedly received before October 7, particularly after a report in the newspaper Haaretz about a "warning call" from UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed.

The Haaretz report sparked widespread discussion, reigniting questions about the nature of the warnings and information available to Israeli political and security leadership before the attack, and whether it was handled appropriately. Hadar's direct involvement in pre-war negotiations with Hamas adds another dimension to the discussion about the intelligence available to Israeli authorities concerning Hamas's intentions and the possibility of a large-scale operation.