Netanyahu's Conspiracy in the October 7 Massacre | Special Column by Avigdor Lieberman 

Originally published in Hebrew, at Walla!

Netanyahu’s attempt to shift the blame for October 7 onto Ronen Bar is pathetic. Everyone knows that the primary responsibility lies with him — and it’s no coincidence that he’s blocking the establishment of a state commission of inquiry. Everything is recorded, documented, and transcribed word for word. These are the things Netanyahu is afraid will be exposed.

Is it even possible to talk about a “conspiracy” regarding the October 7 massacre? If some believe so, then only in the context of the Prime Minister on that day — Benjamin Netanyahu.

On March 16, 2009, I signed a coalition agreement with Likud. Clause 11 of that agreement clearly stated that “a strategic goal of the State of Israel will be the toppling of Hamas’ rule in Gaza.” Netanyahu’s signature is on that agreement. But since then, all I’ve seen from him are efforts to strengthen Hamas and entrench its rule in Gaza as an alternative to the Palestinian Authority and Mahmoud Abbas.

On October 11, 2011, this became clear during the Shalit Deal, when 1,027 terrorists — including Yahya Sinwar — were released. I opposed the deal at the time, while Netanyahu boasted of his “leadership” and “tough decisions.”

In 2014, during Operation Protective Edge, Netanyahu — as he describes in his own book — made a “brave” decision to end the operation after 52 days. He surrendered to Hamas and opted for a ceasefire instead of the military objective I demanded: eliminating Hamas' rule.

On December 21, 2016, as Defense Minister, I handed Netanyahu a document detailing Hamas’ plan to invade Israel, seize communities, and take hostages — exactly what tragically happened on October 7.

Just four months later, on April 19, 2017, Netanyahu appeared before the Knesset State Control Committee and explicitly spoke of Hamas' plan: to infiltrate Israel with 1,000 or more terrorists, occupy communities, and take hostages back to Gaza. He described a multi-pronged attack involving rockets, paragliders, sea-based assaults, and underground tunnels — all with the goal of shocking Israeli morale. This entire hearing is publicly available online for anyone to watch.

It’s all public, it's all recorded — even the 2016 warning that foresaw October 7.

Ronen Bar was appointed as head of the Shin Bet on October 13, 2021 — but what did Netanyahu do in the four and a half years between his warning to the committee and Bar’s appointment? He continued strengthening Hamas’ rule in Gaza.

It was Netanyahu who approved the decision to transfer Qatari cash in suitcases to Gaza. The plan was orchestrated by then-National Security Advisor Meir Ben Shabbat, alongside UN envoy Nickolay Mladenov and Qatar's special envoy Mohammed al-Emadi.

The first transfer occurred on November 8, 2018, against my will as Defense Minister. I demanded an urgent cabinet meeting to reverse the decision and push for dismantling Hamas’ rule. Not only was my request denied, but in that same meeting — held on November 13, 2018, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. — Netanyahu officially declared a policy of “arrangement with Hamas,” a euphemism for transferring cash to Gaza. He also declared a ceasefire and the implementation of this policy — meaning containment.

He was Hamas’ defender — there’s no other way to describe it.

The next day, November 14, 2018, I held a press conference in the Knesset and announced my resignation as Defense Minister. I warned that Netanyahu had capitulated to terror, buying short-term calm at the expense of long-term national security.

Later, we all learned of a personal note from Sinwar to Netanyahu, relayed by Meir Ben Shabbat, in which Sinwar wrote the phrase “calculated risk” — and the rest is history.

Even in February 2020, Netanyahu acted as Hamas’ defender again, sending then-IDF Intelligence Chief Herzi Halevi and Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen to beg the Qataris to continue funding Hamas.

As Defense Minister, I repeatedly demanded to eliminate Hamas leaders — but Netanyahu forcefully blocked every attempt.

Instead of eliminating Hamas, he focused on eliminating his own Defense Minister.

Even two former Shin Bet chiefs — Yoram Cohen and Nadav Argaman, both personally appointed by Netanyahu — testified that every time they raised the need to carry out targeted killings of Hamas leaders in Gaza, Netanyahu refused outright.

So, his attempt now to imply there was some conspiracy, and to shift the blame to Ronen Bar — who undoubtedly failed in his role — is a pathetic effort to avoid the primary responsibility, which rests squarely with him.

There is no doubt: if one person bears the main responsibility for the October 7 disaster, it is Benjamin Netanyahu.

It’s no coincidence that Netanyahu is blocking the formation of a state commission of inquiry. He knows, as I do, that every cabinet meeting, every discussion with security chiefs — everything is recorded, documented, and transcribed.

Anyone who sees the protocols will reach the same conclusion. I was there — I know exactly what he said and what he did.

In the end, I ask myself: was there a conspiracy or betrayal? I don’t believe so. But one thing is certain — the man who conceived the defeatist concept and led it for years was Netanyahu.

I hope that one day, all the recordings and all the protocols from these meetings will be revealed in a state commission of inquiry, and the full truth will come to light.