October 7 attack shapes Israel's election fight and blame battle

Three years after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack, the assault remains central to Israeli politics as the country heads toward late-October elections. The episode, which killed 1,139 Israelis and led to about 250 people being taken captive, continues to shape public debate over security, accountability and leadership. The political fallout has intensified as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces renewed criticism over how his government handled warnings before the attack.

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The latest reporting says Netanyahu is under pressure for not establishing an independent inquiry into the failures surrounding October 7. Similar inquiries have already examined the conduct of the army and intelligence services, but critics say the government itself has not faced the same level of scrutiny. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett is among those accusing Netanyahu of ignoring warnings about Hamas and relying on a security doctrine that assumed the group had been deterred.

Former chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, now a leading opposition figure, has made an independent inquiry a central part of his party's election platform. That has turned the question of accountability into a campaign issue rather than only a matter for post-war review. Netanyahu, meanwhile, has responded by shifting blame toward others, including senior defence officials.

The dispute matters because the October 7 attack is not only a historical event but also a live political fault line in Israel. The elections are taking place against the backdrop of wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, all of which have reinforced the attack's place in public memory. For Netanyahu, the stakes are especially high because he is also on trial for corruption, and a loss could weaken his position further.

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Netanyahu has recently argued that senior defence officials deliberately did not wake him before the attack, saying he would have ordered the military onto full alert if he had been informed. His wife, Sara Netanyahu, has also pointed to the response of opposition leader Yair Golan after the attack as evidence in the wider political argument over who knew what and when. These claims have added another layer to an already bitter blame battle.

What remains unclear is whether an independent inquiry will be created before the election and how much weight voters will give to the issue compared with other campaign concerns. The coming weeks are likely to show whether the October 7 debate strengthens Netanyahu's critics or helps him frame the contest around security and command decisions. For now, the attack remains one of the defining issues in Israel's election campaign.

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