US intelligence has “demonstrated” that it was unaware of Hamas’ plans for a bloody October 7 surprise attack before the attack took place, a top official confirmed Sunday.
In the year leading up to the deadly attack, Israeli officials obtained a roughly 40-page blueprint outlining Hamas’ battle plan, but dismissed it as out of reach for the terrorist group, the New York Times reported.
National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby cautiously suggested that the US had no knowledge of the document, dubbed the “Wall of Jericho.”
“The intelligence community has indicated that they do not have access to these documents,” Kirby told “Meet the Press” on Sunday.
“They have no indication at this time that they had any prior warning of this document or any knowledge of it.”
John Kirby suggested that the US intelligence community did not have copies of Hamas battle plans before the war. X/Meet the Press
A Hamas attack on October 7 left at least 1,200 Israelis dead and sparked a war that the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry claims killed more than 15,000 Palestinians.
Kirby outlined the complexity of intelligence gathering when pressed about why the US would not have access to the documents.
“Intelligence is a mosaic and sometimes you know you can piece something together and get a pretty good picture,” Kirby said. “Other times, you know that there are pieces of the puzzle missing.”
The “Wall of Jericho” did not specify the date when the attack would take place, but instead laid out an attack strategy to attack Israel’s defenses around the Gaza Strip, the New York Times reported.
The terrorist group “followed the plan of action with shocking precision,” according to the outlet, which obtained a copy of the plan.
Palestinians carry the bodies of what they say are Israelis killed by Hamas gunmen who infiltrated southern Israel on the Israel-Gaza border Oct. 7, 2023. REUTERS Palestinians ride in Israeli military Jeeps on the streets of Gaza during the raid on Israeli settlements on Oct. 7. HAITHAM IMAD/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Internally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has come under intense scrutiny for intelligence failures surrounding the bloody October 7 attack.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu has spoken out about this and called it, you know, a failure on their part,” Kirby said.
“They will look at this at the appropriate time. They need to do that. However, at this time, the focus needs to be on making sure that they are able to eliminate this genuine genocidal threat to the people of Israel.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken also weighed in on the revelations on Friday, promising that there would be “accountability” to deal with the attack.
“Right now, the focus is on making sure that they can do everything possible to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Blinken said in Dubai ahead of the COP28 climate summit.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has met several times with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the war began. GPO Circulation/AMOS BEN-GERSHOM/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
In the immediate aftermath of the October 7 attack, reports emerged that Egyptian intelligence officials warned their Israeli counterparts of the attack days before it occurred.
On November 24, both sides agreed to end a humanitarian pause to allow aid to flow to the besieged Gaza Strip and allow hostages to be released.
The pause ended last Friday after Netanyahu accused Hamas of violating the terms of the agreement.
Israel later withdrew its denials in Qatar, a third-party broker where many top Hamas leaders live.
“There is no official denial,” Kirby explained. “That’s because of Hamas. Hamas has failed to produce another list of women and children to be released and we know they are holding additional women and children.”
Bodies of people, some of them elderly, lie on the street after they were killed during a mass incursion by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7. Reuters
Kirby stressed that the US is still working to get denial back on track.
“We want that to happen today. But honestly, I just don’t know,” he said when asked when negotiations could resume.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
