IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir addressed his decision to punish commanders and generals for military failures on October 7 after the findings of two IDF probes were made public.
"The IDF is committed to a thorough, professional, and in-depth inquiry of everything that occurred on that terrible day," Zamir said.
"I have taken a series of steps to advance the issue, including the establishment of an independent review team to examine the inquiries and their findings."
He stated that "the IDF failed in its primary mission on October 7," which marked a "severe, resounding,
systemic failure, relating to decisions and conduct on the eve of the event and during it."
Zamir explains decision to fire IDF commanders
"It is not easy to make decisions that affect people I appreciate and who dedicated their lives to the security of the nation," Zamir explained, but this is a "responsibility we bear by virtue of being commanders in the IDF."
Zamir further affirmed the IDF's readiness and ability to strike across "all arenas," noting the military's Sunday strike that killed Hezbollah military commander Ali Tabatabai.
He concluded by "saluting all IDF troops and commanders, who bear the heavy burden every day, driven by a sense of duty and deep commitment to the defense of the State of Israel."