Gaza Division Intel Officer Denies Blame for Oct. 7 Failures

The defense statement of Lieutenant Colonel Aryeh Amidor, the Gaza Division's intelligence officer on October 7, has been revealed. Amidor denies professional failure or command responsibility for the lack of warning regarding the Hamas attack, asserting he is the only one in the IDF paying a significant price for the failures of October 7. "I deny the IDF's claim that I failed professionally, or that I bear command or professional responsibility for the lack of warning for the war; I am the only commander in the IDF paying a real price for the failures of the army and the state on 7/10," his statement reads.

Amidor filed a petition in March 2026 against his dismissal from the IDF. The petition was sealed, and after the court rejected his claims, a gag order was placed on the documents. The full defense statement is now reportedly exposed. In it, Amidor addresses Sergeant V, who allegedly gathered intelligence on Hamas drills. Amidor claims this was done according to his directive: "Upon entering my role as Intelligence Officer of the Gaza Division... I instructed a specific body in Unit 8200 to produce Hamas training exercises, in order to understand the enemy's tactical capabilities."

Amidor presented correspondence with Sergeant V, stating, "To remove any doubt, the purpose of my email was not to lower but to raise." According to Amidor, the summary of the meeting was distributed up to the Chief of Staff level, and he acted to challenge fundamental assumptions. The report notes that Amidor ignores that he dismissed Sergeant V, did not summon her for discussion, and did not allow her to present her position. This information was revealed as part of the publication of Amidor's defense statement against his dismissal proceedings.