Host of senior officers including ex-IDF intel chief and Air Force chief dismissed, censured over Oct. 7 failures

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir has dismissed several senior officers and censured others over their roles in the October 7, 2023, failures.

Zamir summoned several top officers for meetings today, after vowing earlier this month to make “personal decisions” regarding the commanders based on the findings of a probe conducted by an external panel of experts. In addition, lower-ranking officers were summoned by Deputy IDF Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Tamir Yadai.

The decisions include:

Former Intelligence Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva, who resigned in August 2024, will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Former Operations Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk, who ended his tenure in July 2025, will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Former Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, who resigned in March 2025, will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Current Intelligence Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, who on October 7 served as chief of the Operations Division, was censured but he will continue to serve in the role until the end of his four-year tenure — in 2028 — after which he will resign from the military, at his request.

Current Israeli Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar will be censured over the force’s failure to defend against Hamas’s drones and para-gliders on October 7. He will continue to serve in the role until the end of his tenure in April 2026.

Israeli Navy chief Vice Adm. David Sa’ar Salama will be censured over the Navy’s failure to defend against Hamas’s sea-borne attack on October 7. He will continue to serve in the role until the end of his tenure in the coming months.

Brig. Gen. “Gimmel,” who headed the Military Intelligence Directorate’s Operational Operations Division on October 7, will be ousted from the IDF.

Former signals intelligence Unit 8200 commander Brig. Gen. Yossi Sariel will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Former Gaza Division commander Brig. Gen. Avi Rosenfeld will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Former Southern Command intelligence chief, Col. Ariel Lubovski, will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Col. Haim Cohen, the commander of the Gaza Division’s Northern Brigade during October 7, will be dismissed from reserve duty and no longer serve in the IDF.

Lt. Col. “Alef,” the intelligence officer of the Gaza Division, will be ousted from the IDF.

Additionally, Zamir has ruled that there is no issue with promoting Brig. Gen. Eliad Moati, Brig. Gen. Manor Yanai, and Col. Ephraim Avni, after Defense Minister Israel Katz decided to hold up their planned appointments due to claims that they had supposed involvement in the failures on October 7.