IDF Soldier Warned of Oct. 7 Attack, Was Ignored

A female soldier in the IDF's Unit 8200, responsible for signals intelligence, has been recognized for her prior warnings about Hamas's preparations for the October 7th massacre. Staff Sergeant Major V. had repeatedly informed her command about signs of Hamas terrorists preparing for a large-scale, surprise attack, but her intelligence was not taken seriously at the time. Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir presented V. with a commendation during a meeting discussing the investigations into the failures leading up to October 7th and the implementation of lessons learned.

Zamir praised V. as an example of professionalism and the courage to stand by one's assessment, emphasizing the importance of open discussion and heeding critical conclusions without creating an environment where subordinates fear expressing inconvenient truths. An army investigation confirmed that V. made multiple attempts to convey information about a potential attack to the military intelligence and Southern Command, but her warnings were dismissed, with Hamas's activities being interpreted as routine escalations rather than an imminent threat.

In September 2023, about a month before the attack, V.'s commander, P., also alerted Southern Command leadership about Hamas preparations for a major terrorist incident. V.'s warnings were based on correlating Hamas training exercises with the contents of the "Jericho Wall" attack plan, which she had translated into Hebrew. She had initially reported potential threats as early as April 2022 while monitoring the group's capabilities and plans.

V. was involved in restoring the monitoring of tactical materials within Unit 8200 in 2023, focusing initially on the "Nukhba" special forces unit. Lieutenant Colonel Aryeh Amiadror, who was the head of intelligence for the Gaza Division on October 7th, had advocated for analyzing not only the defensive preparations of Hamas units but also their offensive plans. V. was assigned to this task.

On July 11, 2023, V. reported large-scale exercises by two "Nukhba" companies held on May 25th, observed by senior officials. The training simulated attacks on Israeli aircraft and helicopters, including the elimination of rescue crews, and the capture of a kibbutz and a military college with the scenario of killing all cadets. V. also noted a religious phrase shouted by participants that coincided with the start of the "Jericho Wall" plan. Following her repeated warnings, the IDF's Gaza Division discussed an early warning system for a potential raid on September 26th. V.'s materials detailed 11 "Nukhba" exercises and eight other large-scale training sessions. The article also notes that Hamas had reportedly used disinformation for years to mislead Israel into believing it was not preparing for a major attack, by selectively revealing military activities to desensitize Israeli forces to real threats.