Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Monday that the state commission of inquiry into the events of October 7th will have full authority and its members will be determined by the coalition and opposition equally.
According to Netanyahu, the goal is to ensure an independent investigation, which will be accepted by the majority of the public and provide a clear picture of the events leading up to the tragedy.
"We are talking about an independent commission of inquiry, with full powers, exactly as defined in the Commissions of Inquiry Law. Contrary to what has been claimed, politicians will not be members of the commission. The composition of the commission’s members will be determined equally: Half by the coalition and half by the opposition. The commission will be composed of experts in security, academia, and law, as well as bereaved parents who will serve as observers." Netanyahu clarified.
He noted that "the Government could have established a governmental board of inquiry, with a composition determined entirely by the government. But I believed that such a commission would have gained the trust of only one part of the public. By the same token, a commission of inquiry whose composition was determined exclusively by Justice Yitzhak Amit, as the opposition proposes, would have had only a small portion of the public believing in it. The majority of the public, unequivocally, supports an egalitarian commission of inquiry, and there is a good reason for that. An unprecedented event like October 7th requires a special commission of inquiry, a broad national commission that will be acceptable to the majority of the nation. This will be an egalitarian commission. No side will have any advantage in appointing the members of the commission."
Netanyahu used the United States' 9/11 commission as an example. "President Bush enacted a special law that established a special commission of inquiry. And what was that commission? An egalitarian commission between the two sides of the political aisle. No one complained then of 'political bias,' and I must say that its conclusions received broad legitimacy for that very reason. This is exactly what we are doing. If one truly wants to reach the truth, if one truly does not want to allow a cover-up, how can one oppose this?!"
The Prime Minister conveyed a message to the opposition. "By all means, bring whatever experts you want, ask whatever you want, investigate whomever you want, including me.
The mandate of the commission and the boundaries of the investigation will be determined by the Government. This is not new. This is not unique. This is the practice in all commissions of inquiry of any kind. Therefore, there is nothing unique or irregular here. On the contrary, this is the accepted procedure. And I promise you, all topics will be examined without exception - the diplomatic, the security, the intelligence, and the legal - everything. Today, I convened a team of ministers to formulate alternatives for the scope of the investigation, and the proposal will be brought to the Government for approval. And I am convinced: a special state commission of inquiry, an egalitarian commission between opposition and coalition, is the right way to clarify the truth."