Lawmakers ejected from Knesset as government-backed Oct. 7 probe passes vote

The Knesset votes to give preliminary approval to a bill empowering the legislature to appoint a commission to investigate the Oct. 7 failures – sparking an angry outcry from opposition lawmakers.

By World Israel News Staff

The Knesset voted Wednesday afternoon to give preliminary backing to a coalition bill that would establish a commission to investigate the failures before and during the Oct. 7, 2023, invasion.

Demonstrators, including relatives of some Oct. 7 victims, protested in the visitors’ gallery, demanding the establishment of an alternative commission appointed by the Supreme Court.

Opposition lawmakers castigated the bill, which was submitted by Likud MK Ariel Kallner, with several MKs ejected from the Knesset plenum after they disrupted the vote, attempting to shout down the Knesset Speaker.

The MKs removed from the plenum included Meirav Ben-Ari (Yesh Atid), Naama Lazimi (The Democrats), and Ahmed Tibi (Hadash-Ta’al).

Wednesday’s vote received only partial Coalition backing, passing its preliminary reading by a margin of 53 to 48.

The ultra-Orthodox Agudat Yisrael party, one of two factions in the United Torah Judaism list, did not take part in the vote, while several other Coalition MKs abstained, including former Health Minister Yuli Edelstein (Likud).

If it passes its remaining readings, the law will establish a six-member commission charged with probing the Oct. 7 invasion and the failure by Israel to detect or properly respond to the attacks.

The commission will be appointed by the Knesset, with an 80 MK threshold set for approving members, thus requiring agreement between members of the Coalition and the Opposition.

Should the Knesset fail to reach a consensus on the makeup of the commission, the Coalition and Opposition will each be allowed to tap three candidates, with four observers added to represent bereaved families.

If no consensus is reached within the Opposition or Coalition regarding their appointees, the Knesset Speaker – Amir Ohana of the Likud – will be tasked with choosing the commission members.

However, Opposition lawmakers have rejected the formula proposed in Kallner’s bill, demanding instead a state commission of inquiry.

Such a commission would be carried out under the auspices of the judiciary, with the chief justice of the Supreme Court empowered to select the commission members, including its chairperson.

Coalition members have rejected Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit for the role, accusing him of displaying a clear political bias and failing to respect the authority of the government and Knesset.

“The current president of the Supreme Court is not an objective actor and therefore cannot determine the composition of the commission,” Kallner said. “This is not ideal, but reality cannot be ignored.”

MK Yair Lapid, a former prime minister who now heads the Opposition, castigated Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – who was absent during the bill’s reading – over the vote, claiming the refusal to appoint a state commission was part of a larger effort by the government to conceal its responsibility for the failures of Oct. 7.