IDF chief meets, praises surveillance soldiers after renewed complaints of ignored warnings

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir met with female surveillance soldiers on the border with the Gaza Strip today, telling them that their efforts are “important” and a “critical part of the IDF’s defense array.”

“You are our eyes on the front, the first to identify infiltration threats and activate forces,” he says, according to remarks published by the army, during a visit to the 414th Combat Intelligence Collection Unit at the Re’im Base.

“I greatly appreciate you and know how important your role is. You protect the country’s borders, the communities in the area, and you are a critical part of the IDF’s defense array,” Zamir says.

He adds that the surveillance soldiers’ identifications and assessments “are important, and one of the lessons of October 7 is that we must listen carefully to every female and male soldier as part of assessments and the decision-making process.”

Leading up to that Hamas-led invasion and massacre in 2023, the surveillance soldiers sent alerts about terrorists training for the attack, and were infamously ignored. Some of the surveillance soldiers, who are women, said sexism was a factor in their warnings being brushed aside.

Earlier this month, surveillance soldiers on the border said they felt like they were experiencing a repeat of the unheeded warnings before the October 7 onslaught.