The Israel Defense Forces have announced that they will provide the families of female surveillance soldiers who were killed or taken captive during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack with the complete recordings of their radio communications from the hours leading up to the attack. This follows complaints from the families, who had only received partial recordings initially.
The IDF confirmed that Maj. Gen. Dado Bar Kalifa, the head of the IDF Personnel Directorate, will meet with the families on Friday to play the full tapes, which were obtained from four different radio networks used by the soldiers during the morning of the Hamas assault.
Earlier this week, the IDF had sent the families recordings that only featured the voices of the surveillance soldiers, excluding segments where other troops were heard, as well as large gaps of silence.
The families expressed frustration over the incomplete recordings and the absence of some soldiers’ voices. In response, the IDF assured them that they would be allowed to listen to the entire recording.
The military denied allegations of withholding information from the families, stating that if any additional sections containing the voices of the surveillance soldiers exist, they would be provided. A military official noted that it was unlikely any parts of the recordings had been overlooked when the initial version was given to the families.
The official also clarified that the recordings between 4:48 a.m. and 6:29 a.m. on October 7, 2023, only contained communication from commanders, with no voices from the female surveillance soldiers.
On Tuesday, Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed that he had ordered the IDF to release the full recordings to the families, “except for limited sections restricted due to clear security reasons, in the interest of transparency with the families.”
A military source revealed that the sections not included in the original release featured conversations with combat soldiers, and for privacy reasons, these sections were not provided to the families of the surveillance troops.
“The IDF… regrets any mental anguish it has caused [the families], and had no intention of adding to their suffering,” the army stated.
The radio recordings from the Nahal Oz base were sent to the bereaved families on Monday, following a High Court of Justice ruling after over a year of legal proceedings.
During the attack, in which nearly 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage, terrorists infiltrated the base, located near Kibbutz Nahal Oz.
Fifteen surveillance soldiers were killed, and seven were taken hostage to Gaza. One of the hostages was later rescued, while another was found dead after being murdered in captivity. The remaining five — Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Agam Berger, Naama Levy, and Daniella Gilboa — are still being held hostage.
{Matzav.com Israel}