Head of Israeli intelligence quits over 7 October failure

The head of Israel’s military intelligence has resigned over the failures surrounding the 7 October terror attack by Hamas, becoming the first senior figure to step down.

Major general Aharon Haliva’s resignation could set the stage for more fallout from Israel’s top security brass over the attack, when Hamas blasted through Israel’s border defences, rampaged through Israeli communities unchallenged for hours, killing around 1,200 people, and taking roughly 250 hostages into Gaza. That attack set off the war against Hamas in Gaza, now in its seventh month.

“The intelligence directorate under my command did not live up to the task we were entrusted with. I carry that black day with me ever since, day after day, night after night. I will carry the horrible pain of the war with me forever,” Haliva wrote in his resignation letter, which was provided by the military.