Netanyahu Appointed to Head Panel Defining October 7 Inquiry Mandate

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been appointed to head the ministerial team tasked with defining the mandate of an inquiry into the failures surrounding the October 7 Hamas attack. The team is expected to convene for the first time on Monday, following weeks of uncertainty over the panel’s leadership and role.

The mandate-setting team is responsible for determining the scope, authority, and focus of the investigation. Its decisions are expected to shape which events will be examined, how far back the inquiry will reach, and which bodies and officials may be questioned. Netanyahu would be among the senior political figures potentially examined over decision-making processes prior to October 7, a point that has drawn criticism from opposition leaders.

At the center of the dispute is a disagreement over who should control the investigation. The government is pushing for an inquiry shaped by elected officials, arguing that those chosen by voters, not judges, should decide how such a sensitive investigation is conducted.  Opposition parties, however, are demanding a state commission of inquiry, an independent panel appointed by the president of the Israeli Supreme Court, saying that only an investigation led outside the political system can earn public trust to investigate the failures of October 7.

The question of leadership over the mandate-setting team has itself been contentious. The government had initially decided that Justice Minister Yariv Levin would chair the panel, but the team was not convened under his leadership. Netanyahu has now been designated to chair the panel as it moves toward its first formal meeting.

While coalition leaders have laid out political arguments against establishing a state commission of inquiry, the Supreme Court has ordered the government to formally explain in legal terms why it has not used that mechanism to investigate the October 7 failures.The government has been given until January 4, 2026, to submit its response, adding judicial pressure to the political process already underway.

Opposition leaders reacted sharply to Netanyahu’s appointment as chair of the mandate-setting panel. Yair Golan, head of the Democrats party, accused the government of undermining the credibility of any future investigation. “Netanyahu at the head of the committee defining the mandate? Let’s save the bureaucracy and let him write the verdict himself. This is not a ‘conflict of interest’ — it is organized crime under the protection of the law,” Golan said in a statement. “The man responsible for the greatest disaster in our history is not looking for answers — he is looking for an alibi.”

Golan further claimed that the inquiry would be structured to deflect responsibility away from political leaders. “This committee will not investigate failures. It will investigate how to dump the blame on the army, the protest movement, or even the kibbutzim. The mandate is clear: to cleanse the leader who is clinging to power,” he said.

National Unity leader Benny Gantz also criticized the government’s approach. “Advancing political decoration committees for the greatest failure since the founding of the state is first and foremost a blow to Israel’s security — and also a profound disgrace toward the bereaved families and tens of thousands of victims,” Gantz said in a statement.

Gantz said the opposition would seek to advance a different path. “On Monday, MK Alon Schuster will bring to a vote in the State Comptroller Committee the establishment of a state commission of inquiry. I call on coalition members to stand before the public and act according to their conscience,” he said.

The Prime Minister’s Office has not issued an official statement regarding Netanyahu’s appointment to chair the mandate-setting team.

On Monday, the ministerial panel is expected to convene for the first time, while the State Comptroller Committee is scheduled to consider the opposition-backed proposal for a state commission of inquiry. Additional legislative steps could follow in the Knesset next week, setting the stage for a decisive confrontation over how Israel examines the failures of October 7.