Last update - 00:00 05/12/2007
IDF Chief faults top brass, not troops, for war misconduct
By Haaretz Service
The Second Lebanon War unfolded as it did due to problems in the upper echelons of the Israel Defense Forces and not because of the soldiers operating on the ground, IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi told Army Radio on Wednesday.
"I won't use the terms failure or victory," Ashkenazi told the radio, regarding the month-long war that ended in August 2006. "I use the term missed opportunity. I think there were things we did well, that even Hezbollah would admit surprised them."
"The problem was more with the management, with us, in the way we handled it," Ashkenazi said, adding that while the soldiers were not always sufficiently trained, they went into battle with the best of their abilities.
The IDF chief added that the army has improved significantly, though there is a long road of hard work ahead: "We need to return to the ethics of an offensive IDF, to take responsibility. I want to instill in every soldier and commander the sense that in the time of war, the fate of the establishment rests on him."
Ashkenazi alluded to the possibility of a wide ground operation in the Gaza Strip, saying the army would be prepared for such action to stop Qassam and mortar shell fire. "If necessary, we are ready for the possibility of an operation [in Gaza]," the IDF chief said.
Nevertheless, he added: "I think until then we must exhaust all other possibilities and act day and night to give security to the citizens of Israel."
Defense Minister Ehud Barak has repeatedly said that the time for a widespread ground invasion of Gaza is drawing closer. But on Tuesday, he said now is not the time for a broad operation, which would likely result in heavy casualties to IDF soldiers and Palestinian civilians.
Ashkenazi also discussed with Army Radio his opposition in recent weeks to the release of Palestinian prisoners, saying it was wrong to free them as long abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit remains in captivity. "If a prisoner release could expedite Shalit's release, I would not disqualify it."
Earlier this month, Ashkenazi told chiefs of staff of NATO states in Brussels that, "looking back, I am convinced that the war in Lebanon achieved a few important accomplishments for the security of Israel and strengthened Israel's deterrence [capability]. At the same time, I am now just as convinced, that these accomplishments, and possibly even greater ones, could have been achieved more quickly and at a lower cost."
Related articles: