Eyal Eshel, the father of the surveillance soldier Roni Eshel, H’yd, who was murdered at the Nachal Oz base on October 7, told Ynet that two weeks before the attack, Hamas terrorists held up a sign with the words “Mazal Tov” to one of the soldiers whose birthday was that day. She was later murdered in the massacre. The surveillance soldiers reported the incident to their commanders, but according to Eshel, nothing was done. “This is one of many stories we’ve become aware of, and it’s one of the most shocking stories we’ve heard,” he said. “Hamas terrorists stood on the other side of the fence with a banner. We were horrified. They knew about her birthday, they knew the phone numbers of IDF officers and the license plates of IDF vehicles. When Gazans walk around and are on the other side of the fence, watching the routines of IDF soldiers, nothing here remains secret.” “It illustrates that Hamas knew everything. They also knew what Nachal Oz looked like from the inside. There is talk today about censorship, talk about prohibiting the publication of the names of IDF officers, but that is complete nonsense. The terrorists knew what Nachal Oz looked like from the inside and that is not a secret. They had no problem revealing such information.” “They knew the names [of the soldiers] on the communication networks; they listened in and eavesdropped on them. They prepared for the October 7 attack in the most thorough way possible. They came prepared and we lost because we had no inkling of what they knew.” Roni, a’h, had warned her superiors numerous times that Hamas terrorists were examining the border closely in what seemed to be preparation for an attack, her father said in previous interviews. Fifteen female surveillance soldiers were murdered at the Nachal Oz base on October 7, and seven were taken hostage. One soldier, Noa Marciano, H’yd, was murdered by Hamas while in captivity, and her body was later recovered by IDF forces. Another soldier, Ori Megidish, was rescued by the IDF in late October 2023. The remaining five, Agam Berger, Naama Levy, Liri Elbag, Karina Ariev, and Daniella Gilboa, were b’Chasdei Hashem, released from captivity in recent weeks as part of the current hostage release deal. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)