Controversial commander Barak Hiram named next Gaza Division chief
Move comes after IDF clears him of blame in Be’eri battle; promotion, announced before Oct. 7, was frozen amid probe of his approval to shell kibbutz home where hostages were held
Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram will be the next commander of the Gaza Division, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi decided Tuesday, three weeks after a military investigation cleared the officer of wrongdoing in his decision to authorize tank shelling toward a home in Be’eri where Hamas held hostages on October 7.
Hiram, currently the commander of the 99th Division, had been tapped to serve as the next Gaza Division head before the war. The move was put on hold amid the fighting in Gaza and Hiram’s controversial involvement in the battle at Be’eri.
On October 7, thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel to kill nearly 1,200 people and take 251 hostages, sparking the war in Gaza. Be’eri, one of the hardest-hit communities, was infiltrated soon after the first sirens sounded at 6:29 a.m.
In the 1,000-strong community, 101 civilians were killed and 32 were kidnapped. Another 31 service members were killed fighting the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists. About 100 terrorists were killed in the battle.
The IDF’s tactical investigation into the battle in Be’eri said Hiram had “made professional and responsible decisions, and fully exhausted negotiation efforts,” before allowing forces to fire tank shells near the home of Be’eri resident Pessi Cohen, where terrorists were holding 15 hostages. Thirteen of the hostages were killed in the exchanges of fire.
Shrapnel from one of the shells killed hostage Adi Dagan, 68, and injured his wife, Hadas Dagan, 70. The probe found that the tank shelling was unlikely to have caused the deaths of the other hostages. The causes of death were not definitively identified, though many were apparently killed by gunfire.
On Tuesday, Hiram met with residents at a Dead Sea hotel to which they were evacuated. During the meeting, described by those present as tense and difficult, Hiram apologized to the survivors for his and the army’s failures and took full responsibility for his actions during the battle in Be’eri.
Residents of the kibbutz had opposed Hiram’s promotion, but some gave it their blessing after meeting him on Tuesday.
“At a time of immense pain, we were seared with the feeling that his perspective was operational and tactical, and didn’t take residents’ suffering into account,” wrote Eilam Maor, a member of the Be’eri defense unit, on social media.
However, sitting down with Hiram, “I met a man who is a symbol of ethics and courage — certainly not failure and shortcomings. After we fought in the kibbutz alone for hours on end, with no command and control, he was the one who came and first led the battle,” wrote Maor, adding that the local defense unit now supported Hiram’s promotion.
Nonetheless, some continued to demand Hiram resign. One Be’eri resident, Ron Shafroni, suggested Hiram first take command of a different unit, “as a trust-building measure.”
However, Hiram “insisted that precisely because he was the officer in charge in Be’eri, he was in the best position to take command of the Gaza Division,” said Shafroni.
On Wednesday, Pessi Cohen’s son Shai endorsed Hiram for the role of Gaza Division commander.
“I wish Barak and ourselves to continue growing out of our terrible pain,” wrote the younger Cohen on social media. “Only someone who was with us that day in Be’eri can understand what needs to be done, and after the discussion with Barak I was convinced that he is the right person to lead the Gaza Division.”
Hiram will conclude his role as the 99th Division head in the coming days, and will become head of the Gaza Division at a later date, which has not yet been set, the IDF said.
He will succeed Brig. Gen. Avi Rosenfeld, who on June 9 announced his resignation from the Gaza Division over his role in the failures that led to the Hamas onslaught.
The battle at Be’eri became a symbol of the military’s failure on October 7. Until about 1:30 p.m., only 26 armed Israelis were on site, facing off some 340 Palestinian terrorists. Hiram himself arrived at 4:15 p.m. About an hour later he greenlit the tank strike near Pessi Cohen’s house, where dozens of terrorists had gathered hostages.
Attempts to negotiate with the hostage-takers were unsuccessful, and they opened fire on the forces, leading to the gun battle that ended with their deaths, as well as those of the 13 hostages.
Hiram was also formally censured earlier this year for the demolition of a university in Gaza amid the Gaza war without the necessary authorization. The IDF said that while the facilities were used by Hamas for military activity against Israel, “the process of collapsing the building was done without the required approvals.”
