High Court orders state comptroller to suspend probe into Oct. 7 failures of IDF, Shin Bet

The High Court of Justice issues an interim order instructing State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman to suspend any aspects of his investigation into the multi-level failings of the October 7 attack that deal with the IDF and the Shin Bet domestic intelligence agency.

In December Englman began a broad investigation of the events of October 7, what led up to them, and the government’s response to the assault, but good-governance watchdog groups petitioned the court against the investigation, arguing it was not in the purview of the comptroller and would harm the IDF’s operational capabilities, also expressing concern that the investigation would ignore political responsibility for the devastating invasion and massacres.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi also opposed the investigation into the IDF as long as the war against Hamas continues, and the State Attorney’s Office adopted the position of the petitioners opposing the comptroller’s efforts.

High Court Justice Gila Canfy-Steinitz initially ruled in May that she would not halt the comptroller’s investigation, but having received classified responses from the security agencies, decides today to order Englman to suspend the investigation until a High Court hearing on the issue is held in July.

“In view of the complex security reality, the planned scope of the investigation, which will deal, among other things, with the combat support system and core operational issues, and the preparation required to respond to it [the investigation] at the current time… I order the suspension of the investigation procedures in everything that relates to the IDF and Shin Bet,” rules Canfy-Steinitz.