Hamas surprise attack becomes ‘historic failure’ for Israeli intelligence

• Hamas launched an unprecedented assault on Israel.
• The attack took the nation completely by surprise.
• The question arises: Why did Israeli intelligence services fail to anticipate this assault?

In a startling turn of events on Saturday, the Palestinian group Hamas launched an unprecedented assault on Israel.

They fired thousands of rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip and saw dozens of fighters breach the heavily fortified border through air, land, and sea.

According to Middle East expert David Khalfa, this offensive took the nation completely by surprise and is being viewed as a “historic failure” for Israeli intelligence agencies, as reports.

Hamas continued to engage in armed confrontations within various Israeli communities near Gaza hours after the incursion began. Israel’s national rescue agency described this attack as the bloodiest the nation has seen in years, with a reported minimum of 100 fatalities and hundreds of injuries.

The escalating conflict between Israel and Palestinian fighters in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, both parts of the territory where Palestinians aspire to establish their state, is causing growing concern.

This crisis unfolds against a backdrop of political turmoil in Israel, which has been torn apart by bitter disputes over recent attempts to reform its judiciary.

According to David Khalfa, co-director of the North Africa and Middle East Observatory at the Fondation Jean-Jaurès, a French think tank, Hamas is taking advantage of Israel’s vulnerability to execute its deadly “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm.”

“The scale and sophistication of this attack are unprecedented. Since the Yom Kippur War in 1973, when an Arab coalition launched a surprise attack on Israel, Israel has not faced a full-scale ground invasion like this,” he remarked.

“We are witnessing Hamas commando units – special forces operating deep within Israeli territory – employing the tactics of a conventional army. Battle-hardened and equipped with modern resources, they are engaged in multiple locations simultaneously,” he added.

The question arises: Why did Israeli intelligence services fail to anticipate this assault? Israel boasts one of the most comprehensive and well-funded intelligence networks in the Middle East. It maintains operatives and informants within Palestinian organizations, as well as in countries like Lebanon and Syria. In the past, Israel has carried out precisely timed assassinations of Palestinian leaders, demonstrating intimate knowledge of their activities. Some of these operations have involved drone strikes following the installation of GPS trackers on vehicles or even remotely detonating mobile phones.

On the ground, Israel has a network of cameras, ground-motion sensors, and frequent army patrols along the sensitive border barrier between Israel and Gaza.

David Khalfa further commented on the situation, stating, “This is a significant failure for Israeli intelligence services, one that could be termed historic. It could be likened, without exaggeration, to the events of 1973.”

“Israel is a country that maintains a constant state of alertness, always prepared for battle. It is known for its vigilance. However, there appears to have been some level of unpreparedness, possibly errors in intelligence analysis and assessment, as well as in the readiness of Israeli special forces for an attack of this nature,” he concluded.

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