Father of Nahal Oz Soldier Killed on Oct. 7 Tells Weekly Protest State Owes an 'Unforgivable Debt' to Investigate

Roughly 250 people attended the weekly anti-government protest at Tel Aviv's Habima Square on Saturday, August 22, 2026, to demand a statutory state commission of inquiry into the October 7 attack. Liad Baram, whose son Staff Sgt. Neta Baram was killed at the Nahal Oz military base on October 7, 2023, and who is a member of the October Council of bereaved and hostage families, told the crowd the state has an 'unceasing and unforgivable debt' to investigate 'the circumstances and incidents that led to the largest and worst disaster since the state was founded.' He said 'Instead of leadership… we come up against a wall of obtuseness and evasion of responsibility,' and that 'the system that's in power demands, and keeps making sure, to blind us.' Baram referenced intelligence warnings of unusual Gaza movements ahead of the attack and said soldiers now fear military prosecution more than combat risk, telling protesters 'it's better to be in a military jail than in a military cemetery.' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has opposed a judiciary-appointed state commission, which he says would be biased against him; nearly three years after the attack, no independent or political state commission of inquiry has been established.