‘Something is going to happen’: IDF soldiers warned of attacks – and were threatened with court-martial

‘A day before the invasion I said: ‘Something is going to happen, they are planning something.’

By World Israel News Staff

For months before the October 7th massacre, IDF lookouts warned commanders about unusual activity, but these warnings fell on deaf ears, according to an interview Israel’s N12 news program.

When lookouts reported unusual training exercises and noticed Hamas terrorists getting closer to the security fence, their commanders either dismissed their concerns and in one case, threatened with disciplinary action.

The commander said, according to one lookout, “I don’t want to hear again about this nonsense. If you all bother us again with these things, you’ll be court-martialed.”

“I wasn’t seeing things; This activity was unusual” she continued. “We saw a ton of exercises… It was interesting that they were doing exercises.”

However, the exercises weren’t merely interesting. Several lookouts become concerned enough to report these activities to their commanders.

However, one commander told a lookout that Hamas were just “punks” and weren’t going to do anything.

A lookout told N12, “A day before this happened, I saw people with maps. They were looking at the fence and pointing at it. I said,’ Listen, something is going to happen. They are planning something.’…I even said to someone else in jest, ‘They’re going to storm our post.”

The lookout reported she saw men engaged in repetitive exercises, such as shooting, hitting the ground, and throwing grenades.

The lookout commented, “In the end, that’s what happened to me. They shot at me. They threw grenades at me.”

The lookouts also said they weren’t receiving adequate mental healthcare and some were required to return to their post in two weeks or be transferred.

The IDF responded to the N12 report, “The soldiers have access to medical professionals, in addition to the continuous relationship with their commanders who provide an attentive ear. Their return to duty will be dealt with compassionately and according to the individual’s condition. There is no intention of taking disciplinary measures against them. If these things were said, they are against guidelines and will be handled accordingly.”

Gaza conflictHamas massacreIDF soldiersLookoutsMental health