At Knesset, dozens of families demand state inquiry into October 7

By Sam Sokol 3 March 2025, 4:45 pm

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Sam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"

Dozens of families affiliated with the so-called October Council — which represents October 7 survivors, former hostages and victims’ families — gather at the Knesset for a special plenum session during which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will respond to lawmakers’ demands for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into October 7.

“We came today to listen to the prime minister’s words. We demand that he listen to our words as well,” the group announces. “We need a state commission of inquiry established immediately.”

“I don’t sleep at night,” Nova rave surviver Tali Biner says at a press conference ahead of Netanyahu’s speech.

Netanyahu is slated to speak during a so-called 40 signatures debate, a plenum discussion that the opposition can call once a month and that the prime minister is legally obliged to attend.

Recalling the screams of those being murdered and raped, Biner demands that Netanyahu establish a state commission of inquiry “to investigate what happened to us that day.”

“Without understanding the failures, we cannot fix them and the next disaster is already at hand,” she says.

Rabbi Elhanan Danino, father of slain captive Ori Danino, says: “I appeal to the lawmakers: Look into our eyes and you will see the eyes of parents whose children were slaughtered, murdered, burned and raped. And you say no to them” on forming a commission.

Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the mother of slain hostage Goldberg-Polin, calls on Israeli decision-makers to take inspiration from the American response to 9/11. Following those attacks, “President George W. Bush signed legislation establishing a committee that would investigate the worst terrorist attack in American history,” she says.

“The committee led to major changes in the government, fixed weaknesses in the system, and published a final, clear and accessible report detailing what went so wrong. I call on our decision-makers to listen to the overwhelming majority of the people, establish a state investigation committee and step forward towards the light. A light that only clarity can provide.”