Former Nova security chief sues ex-Shin Bet head over alleged failure to warn before Oct. 7 massacre

The lawsuit accuses Bar of negligence in his handling of intelligence received during the hours before the attack.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Elkana Federman, the former head of security for the Nova Festival who was wounded on Oct. 7, has filed a 2.5-million-shekel lawsuit against former Shin Bet director Ronen Bar, alleging that Bar failed to relay critical intelligence that could have led to the festival’s evacuation before the massacre.

The tort lawsuit, filed in Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court, accuses Bar of negligence in his handling of intelligence received during the hours before the attack.

According to the suit, the Shin Bet detected several unusual indicators from the Gaza Strip overnight, including the activation of dozens to hundreds of Israeli SIM cards allegedly prepared for Hamas terrorists, unusual movements by senior Hamas officials and changes in communications patterns.

A human intelligence source also reportedly alerted the agency that Hamas operatives were gathering in mosques and at meeting points.

Federman claims that the information from the human source reached Bar but was not presented during a situational assessment at Southern Command at around 3 a.m.

The lawsuit calls the intelligence a “game changer” that could have changed the interpretation of the other warning signs.

Bar also ordered the Shin Bet’s “Tequila” team to southern Israel, a decision Federman argues indicates that the agency chief was preparing for the possibility of an infiltration into Israeli territory.

Federman alleges that Bar “did not provide a full report to Southern Command” and failed to alert police securing the festival to the possibility of an infiltration or kidnapping.

The suit says that “through his negligence, he did not lift a finger to protect the festival participants, including the plaintiff.”

Federman maintains that a warning to festival security would have prompted him to halt the event and evacuate the thousands of people attending.

“The party would have been stopped, and the site would have been evacuated hours before the rocket fire and infiltration began,” he claims.

Federman helped evacuate festivalgoers after the attack began and later fought terrorists alongside police officers.

Federman was shot and eventually evacuated to Soroka Medical Center before being transferred to Shaare Zedek Medical Center, where he underwent two operations.

The lawsuit seeks compensation for physical and psychological injuries, loss of earnings, pain and suffering.

Nova FestivalRonen BarShin Bet