Hamas attack ‘could have been stopped’ after Israel border guards concerns ‘ignored’

Several female soldiers from Israel’s border surveillance forces, known as the tatzpitaniyot, claim that their alerts about unusual activity in Gaza were ignored by security chiefs.

These warnings, including sightings of Palestinian guerrillas training with explosives and rehearsing attacks, allegedly went unnoticed in the lead-up to the Hamas attacks on October 7.

The soldiers’ accusations are putting pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is already facing criticism over the intelligence failure that allowed the Hamas onslaught to take place.

The female soldiers argue that their superiors dismissed their concerns, with some top commanders allegedly downplaying the possibility of a Hamas attack and ordering them to stop being overly alarmed.

The tatzpitaniyot, responsible for monitoring a stretch of land using security cameras and sensors, reported signs of unusual activity along the Gaza border.

This included Hamas sending up drones frequently in the weeks leading up to the attack and conducting training for assaults. Despite these reports, the soldiers claim they were ignored and told to stop raising alarms.

Maya Desiatnik, one of the tatzpitaniyots on duty, said: “It’s infuriating. We saw what was happening, we told them about it, and we were the ones who were murdered.”

The soldiers’ statements not only raise questions about the handling of intelligence but also suggest a possible complacency within the Israeli government regarding the threat posed by Hamas in Gaza.