The Israeli military has said it “will investigate in depth the decision on the reserve forces”, following reports that two Commando Brigade companies were diverted to the West Bank two days before the Oct 7 Hamas attacks, The Times of Israel reports.

In response to a question at a press conference, Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari called it a “General Staff decision that is made regularly according to a situational assessment” and said there was no change in the number of troops carrying out routine security on the Gaza border ahead of the attacks.

“The deployment of the forces that carry out regular operational activities [on the border of] the Gaza Strip did not change before October 7,” the spokesman added.

The term “reserve forces” in this case does not mean members of the reserve army, but rather troops that bolster various regions, based on assessments carried out by the forces’ General Staff. The two Commando Brigade companies were part of the reserve forces, rather than those carrying out routine security.