After 800 days, over 200 former hostages and families demand state inquiry into Oct 7 attacks

On the 800th day after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, more than 200 former Israeli hostages, their families, and the October Council – an organization working to establish a state investigation committee – submitted a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday demanding the establishment of a state commission of inquiry.

“We, the survivors of captivity, the families of the survivors, the families of the fallen hostages and those who were abducted alive and murdered in captivity, unite in a clear demand: the establishment of a state, independent and self-sufficient commission of inquiry. This commission must investigate all aspects of that day, including the collapse of the defense and intelligence systems, the unanswered calls for help, the abandonment of the surrounding settlements for long hours, and the abandonment of civilians and soldiers to the inferno that unfolded in the territories of the State of Israel,” the letter stated. 

“We call on the Israeli government to stop evading, stop postponing, stop whitewashing, and establish a state commission of inquiry immediately,” the letter says. 

“We demand truth, justice, and accountability,” the signers wrote, “if you do not intend to take responsibility and establish such a committee, as the majority of the people demand – vacate your seat and let the people decide.” 

Among those signing the letter were former hostages Yarden Bibas, Arbel Yehud, Ariel and Sharon Cunio, Luis Har, Gadi Mozes, Amit Soussana, Daniel Aloni, Ohad and Raz Ben Ami, the sister of Eden Yerushalmi who was murdered in captivity, and Jon and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, parents of Hersh, who was also murdered in captivity. 

“A state commission is the only tool that can investigate without fear, without bias, and without limitations, the entire chain of failures that preceded the day of the failure, those that occurred during it, and all the decision-making processes,” the letter said. 

“A committee of inquiry is not a political tool,” the letter states. “It cannot be composed of those who are the subjects of the investigation. It must be transparent, professional, and have full authority to order investigations, interrogate witnesses, examine documents, and reach clear conclusions, including the mandate to implement them.” 

In publishing the letter, the October Council accused the government of turning its back on the Israeli people. 

“On the 800th day of the gravest disaster in the country's history, the Israeli government still turns its back on the bereaved families, the survivors of captivity, and the entire people,” the Council wrote. “No political committee will cover up the truth – only a full state investigation committee will be able to reveal the chain of failures, the responsibility of the leaders, and the decisions that sealed fates. The failure did not end on October 7th and continues every day that the government refuses to investigate. The more they try to escape the truth, the more we will fight for it.” 

The letter was published on Sunday morning by the October Council, a group of more than 1,500 bereaved families, families of hostages, former hostages and direct survivors of the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7, 2023.

On Saturday evening, thousands of people gathered in Habima Square in Tel Aviv calling for a state commission of inquiry. Family members of murdered hostages spoke at the rally calling for a state commission to probe the events of Oct. 7, and called for the government to ensure that the remains of Ran Gvili are returned to Israel for burial.