Last update - 00:00 17/05/2007
Shas Chair: IDF deterrence capacity can never be restored
By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz Correspondent
Eli Yishai, Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor, said that Israel's capacity to deter its enemies cannot be rebuilt after its failure in the Second Lebanon War, "even at a cost of 500 soldiers' lives." His testimony to the Winograd Committee which probed the war was published on Thursday.
Yishai, who is chairman of ultra-orthodox party Shas, believed the war would have ended within days if the Israeli air force had damaged Lebanon's infrastructure sufficiently. He said that during the war he told the Knesset that he feared sending troops in. "I am not looking for a war, and I don't want us to go in," he said.
Yishai told the committee that he expressed his opposition to an Israel Defense Forces ground offensive in Lebanon, but did not vote against the move.
He said he was aware his opinion was shared by a minority, and his vote would not affect the final decision. In light of this, he decided to show 'solidarity' with the government, to preserve the nationalistic atmosphere in Israel at the time.
According to Yishai, the government acted rashly more than once. "I was concerned about the speed with which we acted, and our haste to make headlines," he said. "We took action too hurriedly and were quick to declare that we had lost."
In his testimony, Yishai explained that he believed attacking Lebanon's infrastructure from the air would have led prompted international disapproval of Israel.
However, it would also have caused Lebanon's prime minister, Fuad Siniora, to decry Lebanon's destruction, which in turn would have forced Hizbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah to down weapons much sooner.
Yishai attended Septet meetings, where major decisions were made regarding Israel's offensive in Lebanon. He consulted Shas party's spiritual counselor, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, on the proposals made in the meetings, and explained his dissatisfaction with them. "I told him how I saw things, and the Rabbi fully agreed with me," he said.
With regard to the army's preparedness for war, Yishai said "There was a strong feeling that we weren't sufficiently prepared," adding "It seemed Hizbollah was far better prepared, stronger and more serious than they had ever been in the past."
In his capacity as Minister for Trade Affairs and Labor, Yishai told the committee that he implemented emergency plans, issued military orders preventing employees across the nation from going on strike during the war, and carried out inspection tours of the country's bomb shelters.
Yishai also stressed that he had met with bank managers and brokered an agreement that banks would allow residents of Israel's war-stricken northern region to withdraw large sums of money easily.
However, when he mentioned this in his testimony, Winograd committee member, Professor Yehezkel Dror reminded him that he did so "too late."
Yishai mentioned Hizbollah's abduction of three Israeli soldiers near the Lebanese border at Mount Dov in 2000, saying Israel should have responded swiftly and forcefully even then, with attacks on Lebanese infrastructure.