"It is impossible not to respond to such an attack. We will act at the time and place of our choosing, and any discussion about it is unnecessary," Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari says at the paper's conference.
Even in the Regional Cooperation Department of the IDF's Strategic Division, they were burning the midnight oil in the late hours on Saturday and early Sunday. The language used in those hours was Arabic, and the content of the conversations was intelligence updates based on developments before, during, and after the attack. More than one country was on the line with the Israeli officers – and not all have formal ties with Israel.
"I'm from Dorot," one woman in the audience told the minister, recalling her Gaza-area community horrific experience during and after the October massacre and kidnapping incidents. "Members of my community are being held captive. Minister, look at me," she continued, with cheers from supporters.
He pointed to the war's start when "Israelis from different sectors put aside October 6 disputes and mobilized – together! – for countless vital missions." But he warned "as time passes, we seem to be gradually returning to the realms of polarization and partisanship."
Among the participants will be President Isaac Herzog, Ministers Benny Gantz, Yoav Kish and Bezalel Smotrich, and members of Knesset. Dr. Miriam Adelson, who is Israel Hayom's publisher, delivered a speech at the plenary session and told the audience that Israelis will prevail together over the challenges posed by the war in Gaza. "All of Israel is Israel Hayom – the Israel of post Oct. 7," Adelson said, stressing that "we are a nation of revival" that knows how to spring right back up after moments of crisis.
