Updated

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asserted that defense officials intentionally failed to wake him in the hours before the October 7 Hamas attack, alleging they feared he would have ordered mobilization and strikes on anyone approaching the border, which could have triggered the invasion earlier. Critics note Netanyahu set policy and held the levers of power in the years leading up to the attack, funding the Hamas-run government in Gaza and shaping the security posture that failed on October 7. A Times of Israel analysis argues Netanyahu, facing reelection, is now attempting to portray himself as a victim of the failures rather than accept responsibility, while his wife Sara has been reported spreading a conspiracy theory about the day's events. The piece contends there is no escaping that the invasion occurred on his watch, under a government he had long empowered, intensifying scrutiny of his conduct ahead of the October 27 vote.