After the October 7 attack on Israel there was a lot of interest of various media organizations in the various videos of military training by Hamas and related organizations, particularly those related to more recent times. Quite a few of these were in fact available on the internet and in social media as these were being rather freely shared. Hence various media organizations including reputed organizations could get a lot of these videos together to analyze these.
One important fact revealed by this analysis is that these videos often show the kind of military training which resembles what happened actually on October 7, or something very close to what happened.
Thus there are videos of breaching the formidable fences and tackling the surveillance systems (in fact three of the surveillance balloons had been sent for maintenance on the day of the attack and hence were not operational anyway) and even of hostages being taken.
As these videos were rather openly available in the weeks before the attack (also keeping in view the fact that several other warnings of planning of such attacks had been received), what would have been the most predictable response and role of the Israeli security forces in this context? As these forces are known to be very alert and aggressive, the most predictable response would have been to search where such trainings are being held and to take a very aggressive position to prevent such trainings. Secondly, even if they could not achieve this, the least they could be expected to do was to widely publicize these videos, such as those which depict hostages being taken, to tell the entire world regarding the dangerous plans of the Hamas as revealed by their own training, as a part of their propaganda against the Palestinian militants. Thirdly, on the side of caution, they should have taken further steps to strengthen the fencing and the surveillance to avoid these getting breached.
However none of this was done, from all available evidence. Amazingly, these videos of military training were simply ignored, as far as any effective action being taken on them is concerned.
When questioned regarding this were asked by journalists of reputed US media organizations whom they cannot ignore entirely, Israeli security officials have generally stated that we will examine all such things after the war is over. This is unlikely to happen anytime soon, and by the time the war is actually over so much more would have happened that it would be relatively easier to ignore such matters. Hence it is important to examine such issues now only, because such understanding would be very helpful in better comprehension of the wider reality that has been evolving in this volatile part of the world in recent weeks, happenings which increasingly have wider and very worrying implications for world peace and stability. It appears that deliberate efforts are being made to widen the conflict by some powerful persons and forces.
The Washington Post reported recently on December 5, 2023 under the title ‘Traders earned millions anticipating October 7 Hamas attack, study says’—“Investors earned millions of dollars by short-selling Israeli stocks days ahead of Hamas’ October 7 attack, apparently profiting of foreknowledge of the bloody intrusion.” This is based on a study by Prof. Robert J. Jackson of New York University School of Law and Prof. Joshua Mitts of Columbia Law School. This has also been reported by the Economist and other media.
It is important to find out how such profit-making based on foreknowledge could have been possible in the context of an event that has been generally and officially seen as completely a surprise attack.
Some people may say that this could have been a guess based on the fact that 6 October 2023 was the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur war but if this explanation is relevant then it would also follow that security should have been extraordinarily strict on and around this date while the reality was that it was found to be extraordinarily lax on and around October 7, with the bulk of the security force missing (diverted to other positions) and three surveillance balloons out of action too.
As representatives of some Arab countries such as Egypt well as Michael McCaul, Chairman of US House Foreign Relations Committee, have stated that warnings of the attack were provided to the Israeli government days before the attack, the issues arising from such important matters should not be postponed till after the war, as resolving such issues now will contribute to understanding what is happening now and thereby also to resolving very serious issues.
Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Protecting Earth for Children, Planet in Peril, Man over Machine and A Day in 2071.
