The Israeli government decided Sunday to move ahead with the establishment of what it called an independent inquiry committee for October 7 that will have full investigative powers and whose members will reflect the broadest possible public consensus.
Under the decision, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will appoint a ministerial committee that will recommend the mandate for the inquiry's framework. The ministerial committee is required to present its conclusions within 45 days. In addition, within 60 days the inquiry body will also be required to update the High Court of Justice on its findings.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid protested the decision, saying: "There is broad public consensus in favor of a state commission of inquiry. Their refusal to investigate their own failures endangers national security and is an insult and an escape from responsibility toward the soldiers and the families who have sacrificed so much since October 7."
The Zulat Institute, which is leading the petition by 86 former elected officials demanding the establishment of a state commission of inquiry, stated: "The meaning of the decision by the government of Israel today is one: a state commission of inquiry into the greatest failure since the establishment of the state will not be established. Instead, it will set up a ministerial committee to blur the investigation of the failure. This is the biggest cover-up attempt since the establishment of the state, a failure of thousands of murdered and wounded and entire towns that were overrun. In the coming days we will use every legal avenue so that the High Court orders the establishment of a state commission of inquiry."
