Combat soldiers who fought in Kfar Aza during the October 7 massacre criticized the IDF probe into the events on the kibbutz, saying it omitted to mention many forces who fought there that day, according to Channel 12 on Tuesday.
"In my opinion, the investigation does not properly reflect the full scope of the IDF’s operations in Kfar Aza that day or the soldiers who sacrificed their lives there," Sergeant-Major M. said, according to the report.
"We were there—we fought and saw with our own eyes what happened," M. noted.
"There was a large Givati force in Kfar Aza, with severely wounded soldiers who fought in intense battles. That force was not included in the report. We were with Yahalom, and none of the investigation teams spoke to us about the fighting in the new neighborhood," M. added.
Captain H. also shared with the Israeli news outlet his experience on the morning of the massacre.
"I live in the north, and that morning, I woke up at 6:00 a.m. for a walk with my dog. I saw our security coordinator preparing for the possibility of an escalation in the North following the sirens in the south. I realized something was happening, but I didn’t yet understand what," H. was cited as saying.
"I watched the first videos from Hamas, and at the same time, calls for emergency call-ups began."
"I packed a bag for war, and at 8:00 a.m., I headed south," Captain H. said.
A Duvdevan company commander along with a friend of his were engaged in the fight in Kfar Aza. "They were standing on one of the rooftops, fighting in live fire against the terrorists," he said.
Captain H. further noted, "I arrived in Kfar Aza at around noon. At first, all we did was evacuate the wounded and the dead."
"We met a Maglan team that had lost their platoon commander," he said, adding, "It was chaotic, and we had to restore order. At some point, a Shin Bet team arrived and told us that the forces had to go inside. With no other choice, we took military gear and weapons from fallen comrades and went in."
"A Duvdevan team entered Kfar Aza in a military vehicle, and within minutes, it came back out, completely riddled with bullets. We realized that we had to plan a ground entry."
The team entered the kibbutz at 2:30 p.m. In the Kibbutz, Captain H. said, "We developed a method where we knocked on doors one by one, checking if there were terrorists inside. We cleared each location and moved forward.
'Many combat soldiers hurt by report'
"There are families from Kfar Aza that we are still in touch with to this day," Captain H. noted, adding, "They told us that they were shown the investigation report and that it did not detail the actions of the forces, except for the Paratroopers Brigade.
"Many combat soldiers were hurt by this report - soldiers from Givati, Nahal Reconnaissance Unit, Duvdevan, and Yahalom were killed right next to us.
"The residents of Kfar Aza say they 'know very well who fought outside their doors for hours.' When the military investigations were conducted, no one spoke to us. We were there, and we saved families," the captain further noted.