Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara called on Wednesday for the establishment of a State Commission of Inquiry to investigate the failures that brought about the October 7, 2023 massacre and the ensuing war, a move that the governing coalition has strongly opposed.
Responding to a petition filed to the High Court of Justice calling for the establishment of a State Commission, Baharav-Miara broke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s position against allowing the state to probe failures he and other leaders may have been responsible for.
“A state commission of inquiry is clearly the most appropriate legal tool for investigating the events of October 7 and [the ensuing war],” she wrote.
Noting the amount of time that has passed since the attack and the lower intensity of warfare in Gaza, Baharav-Miara said the importance of an-depth inquest had only grown.
“Consequently, the need for an effective investigation that can help draw forward-looking lessons and restore public trust in [institutions] becomes increasingly significant,” she wrote.
The attorney general called to expedite the process of convening the commission, citing concerns that its effectiveness “may be compromised if its establishment is delayed for an undefined and unknown period, without at least holding an orderly discussion in the government on the matter, during which, among other things, the steps needed to prevent such harm will be examined.”
Netanyahu submitted his response to the petition on Monday, saying the Court has “no authority” to order the government to establish a commission and that such an order would “shred the principle of separation of powers and the system of checks and balances” in Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset in Jerusalem, November 13, 2024. (Chaim Goldbergl/Flash90)
Hebrew media reported last month that Netanyahu has been trying to push legislation that would ban the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 Hamas terror onslaught, in favor of a political commission of inquiry chaired by one coalition lawmaker and one opposition lawmaker.
He has repeatedly put off the establishment of any inquiry and rejected a state commission to investigate the government’s failures that enabled the deadly Hamas attacks, arguing that all investigations must wait until the fighting in Gaza ends, a stance repeated in Monday’s court filing.
Baharav Miara has had a highly contentious relationship with Netanyahu’s government, with coalition members working to oust her from her position.
Netanyahu’s filing came a week after the independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry released a scathing report that tore into the prime minister, accusing him of undermining the government’s national security decision-making process, creating a rift between Israel’s political and military leadership and leaving the country unprepared for Hamas’s devastating October 7, 2023, incursion.
Members of the independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry at the presentation of their findings, November 26, 2024 (Sam Sokol/Times of Israel)
Members of the committee, which was established by relatives of the victims of the attack in light of Netanyahu’s continued refusal to approve a state commission of inquiry and his insistence that he is not to blame for any of the failures, cautioned that their work could not replace that of an official probe with the power to subpoena witnesses, but said that what they had heard was extremely concerning.
State commissions of inquiry, the inquiry body that enjoys the broadest powers under Israeli law, are typically headed by a retired Supreme Court Justice. Esther Hayut would be a potential choice for that role after her tenure as president of the top court ended a year ago. But Netanyahu is reportedly vehemently opposed to her appointment, given her outspoken criticism of his government’s effort to radically overhaul the judiciary.
President Isaac Herzog also reiterated on Wednesday his support for a State Commission, saying in a speech, “The only way to regain trust is through investigation and thorough learning.
“The state must soon begin the process of investigating the oversight and the disaster in a trustworthy, uncompromised, and independent manner that will lead to lessons being drawn, responsibility being taken, and conclusions being reached.”
