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Three years after the October 7 attacks that reshaped Israel's political and security landscape, a central question remains unresolved: whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will ultimately be held responsible for the failures that allowed the assault to occur. That uncertainty was underscored in a France 24 broadcast segment, in which an analyst noted that it is still unclear whether Netanyahu will pay a political or legal price for what transpired during his time in office.
The anniversary has brought renewed attention to the collapse of Israel's security assumptions on that day, when Hamas-led militants breached the Gaza perimeter and carried out the deadliest single attack in the country's history. For many Israelis, the event exposed deep failures not only in military readiness but also in the political leadership that presided over the pre-war period.
Coverage of the three-year mark has focused heavily on grief and remembrance. France 24 reported on what it described as the "resilience" of Israelis as they mourned the loss of loved ones, alongside a persistent and troubling "sense that we can be safe." That combination of mourning and lingering insecurity has become a defining feature of the post-October 7 national mood.
The anniversary coverage also included the testimony of a former Israeli hostage who spoke directly to France 24, giving voice to those who endured captivity and to the families still awaiting answers. Such accounts have kept pressure on the government to explain how the attack was possible and how the subsequent war has been conducted.
Yet accountability, in the political sense, has proven elusive. Netanyahu has remained in office through the war and its many controversies, and the segment's framing suggests that any reckoning with his tenure is far from settled. Whether through elections, official inquiries, or legal proceedings, the path to consequences remains unclear.
Supporters of the prime minister argue that leadership changes mid-war would destabilize the country and weaken its negotiating position. Critics counter that avoiding accountability erodes public trust and sets a precedent in which catastrophic failures carry no political cost. The debate touches on fundamental questions about how democracies assign responsibility for national security disasters.
The uncertainty extends beyond Netanyahu himself. Israel's military and intelligence establishments have also faced scrutiny over the pre-attack intelligence failures and the response on the day. Any formal investigation would likely examine the chain of decision-making across political and military levels, making the prime minister's role only one part of a broader reckoning.
Regionally, the past three years have seen the conflict expand and mutate. France 24's Middle East coverage in the same period includes reports on Yemen's Houthis claiming attacks on Aramco facilities in Riyadh and Saudi-backed Yemeni forces expelling Houthis from areas around a key strait. These developments reflect how the October 7 aftermath rippled across the wider region.
There have also been questions about the trajectory of Western involvement. One France 24 segment examined the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, with an analyst describing it as "a massive strategic and tactical mistake" and warning that "America is leaving Iraq, but Iran isn't." Such assessments illustrate how the regional balance of power remains unsettled years after the initial attack.
Other coverage has highlighted humanitarian and legal dimensions of the broader conflict. Human Rights Watch warned of a "collective global detention crisis" as ISIS suspects faced what was described as "outsourced" justice in Iraq. These stories, while distinct from the Israeli political debate, form part of the wider environment in which questions of accountability are being raised.
For ordinary Israelis, the anniversary is not an abstract political matter. Passengers on a harrowing flydubai flight described the experience as like a "rollercoaster," a reminder that security anxieties now permeate daily life in ways that extend beyond Israel's borders. The sense of vulnerability that followed October 7 has not faded with time.
Three years on, the country remains engaged in intense debate over the war's aims, its costs, and its endgame. Netanyahu's political survival has depended on holding his coalition together while managing external pressures from allies and adversaries alike. That balancing act has delayed, but not resolved, the question of his culpability.
The France 24 segment's conclusion was notably cautious: it remains unclear whether the prime minister will pay for what happened during his time in office. That ambiguity captures the essence of Israel's current moment — a nation still mourning, still fighting, and still waiting to learn whether the highest levels of leadership will ever be called to account.
As the anniversary passes, the demand for answers is unlikely to disappear. Families of victims, former hostages, and a public scarred by the failures of October 7 continue to press for transparency. Whether that pressure translates into political or legal consequences for Netanyahu is a question that may define Israeli politics for years to come.
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