Last update - 00:00 29/11/2006
Hirsch to make his case before Halutz in 'upgraded hearing'
By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent
The Military Advocate General (MAG) views the hearing Chief of Staff Dan Halutz is to hold for the commander of Division 91, Brigadier General Gal Hirsch, as an "upgraded hearing" rather than another investigative committee to re-examine the kidnapping of the two soldiers by Hezbollah.
Halutz will summon a number of generals to the hearing, at which Hirsch will lay out his arguments against the conclusions of the committee headed by Major General (res.) Doron Almog.
Hirsch, who two weeks ago tendered his resignation to the chief of staff in protest of the harsh conclusions and recommendations of the Almog committee with regard to him, has put together a detailed document he intends to present to Halutz and the generals.
The MAG, Brigadier General Avihai Mandelblit, has determined that, despite Hirsch's decision to retire, he should be given the opportunity for a detailed airing of his objections to the Almog report.
In the military justice system, a hearing allows a senior commander (in this case, the chief of staff) to listen to the side of an officer against whom measures have been recommended before he decides whether to adopt the recommendations. Since this is a charged and complex issue, and considering the series of central positions Hirsch has held in the Israel Defense Forces over time, Mandelblit proposed that Halutz expand the procedure and involve a number of generals who are experts in the fields of operations and intelligence in the northern sector.
A debate has developed over the past week between Hirsch and Almog over the nature of the process that is to take place next week. Hirsch saw it as a kind of additional committee, the third scrutinizing of this affair, above the Almog committee. Almog argued that it is only a hearing. Senior officers in the IDF told Haaretz on Tuesday that there were to be only two investigations in this affair (Almog's and a committee headed by Brigadier General Avi Ashkenazi), and they would not permit a third. The officers said the chief of staff is the one to decide whether to adopt the recommendations with regard to Hirsch, but there is nothing to prevent him from asking the advice of relevant generals before he makes his decision. The purpose of the solution found is to allow Hirsch to fight for the truth as he sees it within the army, the officers said, adding that Almog had also been invited to the hearing.
Hirsch is to complete his tour of duty next week. He has not changed his mind about retiring, however military sources said they believed a change in Halutz's position might lead Hirsch to reconsider his stand.
This week Halutz is expected to meet with the Almog committee to discuss the final recommendations with regard to the apportionment of responsibility for the kidnapping of a number of senior commanders, among them GOC Northern Command Udi Adam, who has retired in the interim; his replacement, Major General Gadi Eisenkott (who served at the time as chief of operations on the General Staff); and the head of the Intelligence Branch, Major General Amos Yadlin.