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But what are the army, the police, the security services doing?" This question is nagging at Israelis, and anxious. Believing themselves to be safe, they found themselves at the mercy of a few hundred armed Islamists who spread terror in the south of the country. Even more disturbing is the fact that no one raised the alarm before the attack, which caught the military and politicians completely off guard.
The Hamas-led operation likely required several months of preparations that went completely unnoticed by the Shin Bet counterterrorism service or the army's intelligence services. It was a "colossal failure by the entire hierarchy," said Eli Maron, a former commander of the Israeli navy. "A debacle", a "mega shame"... Military commentators have no words harsh enough to denounce this fiasco. Israelis will not soon forget the photos and videos of mothers with their children, as well as elderly people taken hostage...
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