Israel says Lebanon offensive plan 'approved' as tensions surge An Israeli soldier wearing a patch on the back of his flack jacket showing Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as a target. (Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT — The commander of Unit 8200, the Israeli military's largest intelligence-gathering unit, plans to announce his resignation in the coming weeks, according to a report by the Israeli news website Walla on Sunday.
Brigadier General Yossi Shariel, the unit's commander, is expected to step down following criticism over the intelligence failures on Oct. 7, when Hamas launched a land, air and sea operation against southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking approximately 250 hostages back to Gaza.
At the start of the conflict, Major General Aharon Haliva, Brigadier General Amit Sa'ar and Brigadier General Shariel were criticized for failing to anticipate the outbreak of war. Military sources described Haliva's recent investigation into these failures as "shocking and painful."
Sa'ar resigned due to illness, and now Shariel's resignation is expected to pave the way for a new commander of Unit 8200. Shariel also faced criticism when the British newspaper The Guardian revealed his identity – previously intended to be confidential – through digital traces linked to his online presence.
On Aug. 25, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah announced that the primary military targets in the retaliation operation to the assassination of Hezbollah commander Fouad Shokor were the "Aman" military intelligence base and Unit 8200 in Glilot, as well as the air defense base in Ein Shemer.