Senior Israeli military officers discovered during a visit to brigade headquarters that surveillance footage from the day of the "Al-Aqsa Flood" operation on October 7 had "mysteriously" disappeared. The "Jerusalem Post" reported that important recordings from the day of the "Black Saturday" attack had been removed from the central database, raising suspicions that everyone is primarily looking out for their own interests, with their gaze fixed on what comes next. However, the military claims that the important recordings were not deleted but that access to them was restricted to authorized personnel. Teams have been tasked with analyzing lessons learned from the war, studying Hamas's operational strategies, and disseminating this information among the combat units of various divisions.
Investigation teams were formed to focus on planning for the border area and security measures designed to protect municipalities. Reserve officers expressed concerns about the disappearance of crucial videos captured from different military surveillance cameras along the Gaza border, which are part of a military network known as "ZiTube." The newspaper speculated that the important videos may have been deliberately deleted to obstruct a thorough investigation into the events that occurred in the Palestinian territories, border violations, and the overall situation.
One senior reserve officer from a battalion recounted the situation, stating: "We were planning to show a key figure a video of a specific incident from last week, only to find that someone had deleted the videos. It was an extremely embarrassing situation." He added, "This later led to suspicions about the motives behind these actions. Ultimately, special permissions were granted to those who requested them. The question arises: Do officers at our level need such permissions?"
He continued: "It seems as if there is a power struggle between senior officials and those who hold specific roles, with a general sense that everyone is now prioritizing their own interests in what lies ahead." The newspaper quoted sources within the Gaza division revealing a "malfunction" in communication recordings since October 7. According to these sources, "some recordings have either disappeared or were downloaded from the network and relocated following directives from leadership officers. Hence, they are not accessible."
The sources added: "Typically, communication recordings are deleted after a certain period unless someone deliberately saves them within the system. It appears someone made a deliberate decision to transfer or delete these recordings to ensure no one could review them." The newspaper noted that these recordings are vital as they provide a comprehensive account of what occurred and outline necessary actions, particularly focusing on the critical first eight hours, including moments when there was a lack of communication channels.
