IDF Intelligence Officer Dismissed Hamas Raid Plans Before Oct. 7

The Supreme Court has permitted the publication that Lieutenant Colonel Aryeh Amidor was the intelligence officer for the Gaza Division on October 7th. Lt. Col. Amidor is identified as the officer who strongly dismissed the possibility of a Hamas raid, codenamed "Jericho Wall," which was fully executed on the morning of the attack. This occurred despite warnings from a sergeant first class from Unit 8200 of Military Intelligence (Aman) who identified Hamas's readiness for a raid and operational plans. Lt. Col. Amidor reportedly dismissed these warnings, calling the scenario "completely imaginary."

In late September 2023, the sergeant, increasingly concerned, approached Gaza Division commanders again after detecting unusual Hamas activity. However, Lt. Col. Amidor maintained that a raid was improbable and scheduled a discussion on the matter for after the Sukkot holiday. In addition to disregarding the sergeant's alerts, Lt. Col. Amidor also ignored warnings from observers serving in the division.

A review by retired Major General Sami Turjeman, examining core IDF investigations, concluded that the "Jericho Wall" document should have significantly raised alarms. An updated version of "Jericho Wall" in May 2022 detailed a raid plan, including the destruction of the Gaza Division, but this was also met with dismissiveness by the IDF.

Lt. Col. Aryeh Amidor's father is retired Major General Yaakov Amidor, a former National Security Advisor and senior official in IDF Intelligence. Since the war, the elder Amidor has frequently appeared on news channels, speaking out against the establishment of a state commission of inquiry, despite his son being considered involved in the intelligence failure. Notably, retired Major General Amidor was previously considered by Prime Minister Netanyahu as a potential candidate for a government investigation committee into the failure, without disclosing this potential conflict.