The Situation Room - October 15th

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I’m Atlas, and welcome to The Situation Room! We cover the most high impact geopolitical developments every Wednesday!

Today’s topics:

• Former Israeli Justice Minister: 'Public call for state inquiry commission is needed' to investigate October 7 attacks

• Russia Hands JFK Assassination Files To Republican House Rep. Luna

• Argentina Says US Treasury Will Continue to Support Peso

Former Israeli Justice Minister: 'Public call for state inquiry commission is needed' to investigate October 7 attacks

_{By: Atlas}

Former justice minister Yossi Beilin has called for a formal state commission of inquiry into Israel’s failures surrounding the October 7 Hamas attack, adding momentum to a broader public push for accountability. Such a commission would carry significant legal authority and historical precedent, with potential implications for Israel’s civil-military leadership, wartime decision-making, and the trajectory of diplomacy around Gaza and the wider conflict.

A call rooted in a painful crisis

Yossi Beilin, a veteran figure in Israeli peace diplomacy and a former justice minister, is urging a state inquiry into the events leading up to and following the October 7 attack, when Hamas-led militants breached Israel’s border, killed around 1,200 people in Israel, and took roughly 240 hostages, according to Israeli authorities. His message taps into a growing demand inside Israel—from bereaved families, some hostages’ relatives, and former security officials—for a comprehensive, independent review of how the country’s intelligence, military, and political systems failed to prevent or contain the assault.

Beilin’s call comes as the war in Gaza grinds on. Israeli operations have devastated large parts of the strip, with the Gaza Health Ministry reporting tens of thousands of deaths, and aid groups warning of a deepening humanitarian crisis. For Israelis and Palestinians alike, the stakes of what went wrong on October 7 are not abstract. Communities along Israel’s southern border remain shattered; many residents in both the south and the north remain displaced due to ongoing cross-border fire. In Gaza, civilians continue to bear the brunt of bombardment and displacement. An inquiry, supporters argue, is a step toward learning hard lessons that could prevent further tragedy.

What a state commission would actually do

In Israel, a state commission of inquiry is the country’s most powerful fact-finding tool. Established under the Commissions of Inquiry Law (1968), such a is appointed by the president of the Supreme Court at the government’s request, typically chaired by a sitting or former judge, and empowered to subpoena witnesses, compel documents, hear testimony under oath, and issue public findings. While it does not hand down criminal verdicts, its recommendations can reshape careers and institutions. The Agranat Commission after the 1973 Yom Kippur War and the Winograd Commission following the 2006 Lebanon War are the most cited precedents; both delivered searing critiques that reverberated through Israel’s political and security establishments.

Supporters of an October 7 commission say that only a with this level of independence and legal muscle can credibly map the chain of failures—across intelligence assessments, force posture, border defenses, and crisis response—and then translate findings into reforms. Opponents, or those urging delay, argue that a full state inquiry while the war is ongoing could distract field commanders, politicize testimony, or compromise sensitive operations. In the meantime, the Israel Defense Forces has launched internal fact-finding teams, and the State Comptroller has opened reviews, though those processes lack the public standing and remit of a formal commission.

Accountability and public trust

For ordinary people, the question of an inquiry is ultimately about trust—whether citizens can believe that institutions will level with them after a national disaster and fix what went wrong. Families from the southern communities ravaged on October 7 have pressed for transparent answers on emergency alerts, police and military response times, and the availability of protective infrastructure. Reservists and conscripts want to know that tactical and operational gaps are being addressed before they are sent back into combat. In Gaza, Palestinians look to any sign that the systems driving their daily reality—blockade, governance, and the conduct of hostilities—will be scrutinized with seriousness.

Internationally, credible accountability measures also matter. Key partners like the United States and European countries are balancing support for Israel’s right to self-defense with legal obligations tied to the laws of war. A robust, independent inquiry into October 7 and its aftermath could influence debates over military assistance, humanitarian access, and post-war arrangements in Gaza by showing that Israel intends to learn and adapt. It may also affect how regional mediators in Egypt and Qatar gauge the prospects for a durable cease-fire and a framework to return remaining hostages, whose families have kept public attention on the cost of delay.

Watching for the next steps

The government has so far signaled that a full state commission would come after the war, while critics argue that early, staged inquiries—with interim findings—could save lives by correcting ongoing flaws. The timeline will matter: the longer a process is pushed off, the harder it may be to collect fresh evidence and maintain public confidence. The scope will matter too. A narrow review risks missing systemic issues; an overly broad mandate could stall under its own weight. And the composition—particularly an experienced judicial chair and members with credibility across the political spectrum—will determine how much Israelis and the international community trust the eventual findings.

As the conflict continues and diplomacy lurches forward in fits and starts, Beilin’s intervention is a reminder that wars are not only fought on the battlefield but also in the institutional mirror. Israel’s past inquiries reshaped doctrine, leadership, and policy. An October 7 commission, if established with real independence, could do the same—informing how Israel defends itself, how it relates to its neighbors, and how it rebuilds faith between the state and its citizens after one of the darkest days in its history.

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