Last update - 00:00 07/09/2006
General Staff officers warned PM: Last-minute expansion of war is a mistake
By Ze'ev Schiff, Haaretz Correspondent
Two Israel Defense Forces General Staff officers, operations chief Major General Gadi Eisenkut and the Intelligence Division's head of research, Brigadier General Yossi Beiditz, strongly opposed last month's decision to launch a broad ground offensive against Hezbollah shortly before the UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for a cease-fire in the war in Lebanon.
The decision to embark on the operation was made on Wednesday, August 9, when it was already clear that the Security Council would vote on a cease-fire resolution soon thereafter. The council in fact passed the resolution at 5 A.M. on Saturday.
Beiditz wrote in a letter to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz that his division believed that the last-minute offensive would not significantly affect the enemy or lead to achievements. Beiditz sent a copy of the letter to Chief of Staff Dan Halutz.
Eisenkut opposed the decision for operational reasons.
Professionals have debated two significant ground battles that were conducted during the war.
One took place in the war's early stages in the Shi'ite town of Bint Jbail, where Hezbollah built a complex of bunkers and tunnels. The town was viewed by Israel as being symbolically important because it is where Hassan Nasrallah delivered his "cobweb" speech in which he argued that Israel and its society were fragile like the web of a spider.
The operation against the town, which IDF forces had to retake several times, led to significant losses.
The second operation under debate was the major ground offensive launched toward the end of the war. Forces began to move forward soon after the decision was made on Wednesday, August 9, but the operation was surprisingly delayed by 24 hours. And on Thursday, a decision was made to delay the operation for another 24 hours. As a result, many of the units found themselves "stuck" in the field. During this two-day period, eight elite unit soldiers were killed.
The final decision to begin the offensive was made on Friday at noon, and the Security Council passed its resolution later that day. The government accepted the cease-fire resolution during its meeting on Sunday, and it went into effect at 8 A.M. on Monday.
A heated debate took place over the offensive. Halutz supported the decision wholeheartedly, and continues to support it. Eisenkut strongly opposed the decision.
Beiditz also opposed the decision, which was more exceptional, since he had not been invited to cabinet deliberations.
Halutz did not object to Beiditz' right to express an opinion, but chastised the officer for sending a letter directly to the prime minister.
However, senior intelligence officers and former chiefs of staff believe that Beiditz' position obligated him to express his opinion, even directly to the prime minister.
Olmert's military secretary, Major General Gad Shmani, also opposed the move, and advised the prime minister accordingly.
The IDF leadership said prior to the launch of the offensive that it could meet its targets within 96 hours. The forces eventually had only 72 hours to carry out its tasks.
The General Staff claimed that the UN resolution had been improved in Israel's favor due to pressure caused by the offensive.
During the operation, 33 IDF soldiers were killed and many more were injured.