Bereaved Israeli parent to government: ‘The problem is you, not Hamas’
An Israeli man whose family is currently being held hostage in Gaza blamed government officials and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Saturday for their inability or unwillingness to have prevented the October 7th massacre.
Avichai Brodetz’s wife and three children were kidnapped by Muslim forces on October 7th and brought to Gaza, where they are currently being held hostage along with nearly 240 other Israelis. The Brodetz family was abducted from their home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza where approximately 60 of the 1,400 Israeli men, women and children were slaughtered that day.
During an interview on Israel’s Channel 12 Saturday, Brodetz placed blame for October 7th squarely on the shoulders of Israel’s government.
"My family was not kidnapped because of Hamas, my family was kidnapped because there was no army to protect me, that's the reason," he told Knesset Member Boaz Bismuth. "Hamas is very small compared to the State of Israel, the army could easily repel Hamas, the entire concept of the IDF collapsed, Hamas understood this, was much smarter than us, carried out a brilliant operation, raped our wives and slaughtered our children, because the IDF wasn't there. So it didn't happen because of Hamas, but because of your concepts. How easy it was to repel Hamas with fighter jets and tanks - which simply weren't there."
Israel’s intelligence forces — including the IDF, Mossad, and the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security agency — have been considered legendary for decades by international security experts. Israel’s security apparatus includes technology so advanced that even small animals cannot approach Israel’s border without alerting authorities.
"You live in a fantasy and blame Hamas, and you are guilty, you are guilty of that,” Brodetz continued telling Bismuth. “I saw them coming towards my house, with my eyes, and what did I not see? I did not see tanks, and I did not see helicopters, or soldiers, I did not see anything. The problem is you guys — get this through your head, and then maybe you'll solve this problem.”
Brodetz is among the 80% of Israelis who reportedly blame Israel’s government for the massacre.
Earlier this month Israel Transportation Minister Miri Regev was denied entry to Kibbutz Be’eri, where over 120 Israelis were massacred. The purpose of Regev’s visit was to assess the damage wrought by the Muslim attackers and determine what reconstruction efforts are necessary. But when she arrived at the kibbutz she found the entrance blocked by its residents. The manager of the kibbutz’s famous printing press, where Regev was scheduled to visit, asked her to leave.
"We blocked the entrance with our bodies," one kibbutz member told Israeli media. "Miri Regev is a criminal with blood on her hands. Likud ministers may not have murdered people personally, but in the last 14 years, they strengthened the rule of Hamas and weakened Israeli society. They have a huge part in this failure.”
The kibbutz member was referring to Israel’s involvement in funding Hamas. In cooperation with Qatar, Israel’s government has openly approved funding to the organization. In 2020 when Qatar threatened to cut off finances to Hamas, Mossad chief Yossi Cohen met with Qatari officials and urged them to continue funding Hamas forces in Gaza.
Israeli officials have previously admitted to the Israel government’s deliberate creation of Hamas which they claim was to counteract the Palestinian Authority.
