Government tried to take apart, influence Hostage Family Forum - unofficial probe

A senior government official attempted to hire a PR professional to sabotage the Hostage Family Forum two weeks after October 7, the PR professional Ofer Rosenbaum told the unofficial October 7 probe Tuesday, after testimony from Gil Dickmann hinted at attempts to harm the forum.

Rosenbaum, who heads the PR company Rosenbaum Group, behind some of the more controversial campaigns in Israel, is also the head of the unofficial probe's headquarters. He decided to testify on Tuesday because of Dickmann's testimony, the news of six bodies of hostages who had been alive in Hamas captivity returned to Israel, and other testimony heard by the committee this week, he said.

The probe was founded by families of those killed on October 7, representatives from the attacked kibbutzim, and civil society groups last month. One of the primary goals of the committee, which is composed of legal and security experts, is to initiate the foundation of a state probe, which was shot down by Israel’s political echelon.

Rosenbaum described the call, saying that a government official "who is reported on a lot and very well known" tried to hire him to "take apart the family forum."

The pretext for hiring his services to take apart the forum was that the hostage families "are making a lot of noise and mess," and need to be stopped to allow the government the quiet needed to make a deal.

"We know that this was not the situation," said Rosenbaum on the pretext.

The probe committee asked him if he knew of other instances of attempted interference in the forum's work, and he said that efforts have been made against them and are ongoing.

Divide and conquer

Rosenbaum explained that his PR group specializes in "psychological warfare" and intelligence and is generally hired to eliminate competition and neutralize business and political conflicts.

He said that "divide and conquer" tactics are a significant part of his work and that these are what government officials are trying to use against the hostage family forum to weaken their influence.

Rosenbaum's testimony followed testimony by Dickmann, whose cousin Carmel Gat has been held by Hamas in Gaza since October 7. In his testimony, Dickmann also touched on division tactics used to limit the influence of the hostage families.

"Splits and division within the hostage families are in the government's best interests, I feel," Dickmann told the committee.

"We have seen this in a few places," he said, adding that just the act of founding other forums that work with hostage families and the government working with them creates the appearance of division where there is none.

Dickmann accused the prime minister of paying more attention to a subsection of the hostage families.

According to Dickmann, it was announced Monday that Netanyahu would meet with the Tikva (Hope) Forum. This forum consolidates some hostage families who are pushing for more military pressure and a continued IDF offensive in Gaza and have come out against hostage deals with Hamas.

Other hostage family members and returned hostages have been trying to meet with the prime minister without success, said Dickmann.

"For months, we have been trying, and it is not working," he said. "I think the prime minister has a listening ear for some of the hostage families."

Dickmann also said that those connected to the prime minister and the government have attempted to change the way the forum operates—who it is and who it works with.