Senior Shin Bet Official Ordered Colleagues to Kill Her if Captured on Oct. 7

A senior official within Israel's internal security agency, the Shin Bet, revealed that she instructed her colleagues to kill her if she were captured by Hamas on October 7, 2023. The directive was issued on the morning of the attacks as Hamas terrorists invaded the kibbutz where she lived near the Gaza Strip.

"If I fall into captivity, it is clear to everyone that they must kill me," the official stated in a documentary set to air on Israel's Channel 12. Appearing on camera, she recounted realizing the gravity of the threat. Due to her position and the sensitive information she possessed, her capture would have posed a significant security risk to Israel.

An active member of the Shin Bet's Tequila unit confirmed that evacuating her was a priority. However, combatants first chose to rescue several families under attack by terrorists attempting to breach their safe rooms. "It was clear that we had to evacuate her as quickly as possible and that she could not fall into Hamas's hands," the agent testified, adding, "But before going to save her, we had to rescue the families who were fighting the terrorists."

A former head of the Shin Bet's southern district compared the potential consequences of her capture to those of a high-ranking Military Intelligence official being abducted. "The level of knowledge she possesses and her intimate mastery of many files would have caused considerable damage," he explained.