Last update - 00:00 27/01/2008
IDF reservists: Military must be kept out of political arguments
A group of 85 Israel Defense Forces reservists on Sunday sent a letter to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi saying they opposed attempts to combine criticism of the military and the political echelon when placing blame for the conduct of the Second Lebanon War.
"We officers and combatants of the reserves, of all ranks and all corps, wish to express to you our hesitation against integrating the army and politics," wrote the signatories.
"As far as we are concerned, the army must remain above and beyond all political arguments, legitimate as they may be. The use of uniforms, whether in compulsory service or reserves, for means of political protests in a democratic state is a dangerous thing which must be fought."
"Democratic decisions in Israel are made by the public by means of voting and the IDF is forbidden from being involved in this," they wrote.
Reservists and families of fallen soldiers met Sunday with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and said her understanding of responsibility and leadership gave them a sense of optimism.
"We had a very good conversation with the minister," said Major (res.) Tomer Buhadna, who heads the group of reservist protesters. "Sitting before us was a person who understands what responsibility is and understands what leadership is. She was touched and I believe she will make decisions like a true leader must - alone and with consideration."
Ben-Eliezer: Labor will demand PM quit if war report harsh
The group of reservists and bereaved families also met Sunday with Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, who said that the Labor Party would demand Prime Minister Ehud Olmert resign if the report released by the Winograd Commission investigating the Second Lebanon War was harsh.
"If the Winograd report is harsh, the Labor Party will petition to replace the prime minister, Ehud Olmert, as promised by party chairman Ehud Barak, and will not open negotiations for elections," Ben-Eliezer said.
Livni on Sunday defended her decision to meet with protest groups, including families of fallen soldiers, who are demanding Olmert resign over the government's handling of the Second Lebanon War. Livni said that agreeing to the meeting was the least she could do.
The foreign minister held the meeting with IDF reservists and bereaved parents in Jerusalem on Sunday.
Livni has come under fire within her party for meeting with these groups just three days ahead of the release of the Winograd Committee's investigative report on the 2006 conflict.
She told ministers from her Kadima party, however, that she would not duck the meeting on the grounds that she was a member of the government and therefore responsible for the decisions that impacted their lives.
"There is no right time for a meeting such as this," she said. "A meeting with combat soldiers and bereaved families is the bare minimum required, even if it's difficult. I didn't evade these meetings until today, and I won't evade them now. I intend to listen to them, and it definitely won't be easy."
"There are sources that are concerned or oppose the meeting, and to them I would like say that there is a serious problem with the public's faith, and the worst thing is to withdraw [oneself] and create camps where on one side there's us [the government] and on the other side the soldiers and the bereaved soldiers," she said.
The activists reportedly hope that Livni will reiterate her call for Olmert to resign, as she did following the publication of the interim Winograd report in April 2007, and not back down this time.
According to senior figures in Olmert's Kadima party: "It's a pity Livni agreed to meet with the reservists three days before the [Winograd] report comes out. It doesn't look good."
Sources in the Prime Minister's Bureau said Livni had not informed them of her meeting with the reservists and bereaved families. But they said that "there is no reason not to hold the meeting, and people can meet with anyone they want."
Nevertheless, senior Kadima figures said Olmert, who did not himself meet with the protesters, did not view Livni's meeting favorably, to put it mildly.
Ayalon: PM's political future depends on the public
Olmert's political future depends on the public's response to the Winograd Committee's final report, Minister Ami Ayalon (Labor) told the German publication Der Spiegel in an interview to be published Monday.
Ayalon, who eight months ago called on Olmert to resign, said the public response will determine whether the prime minister should remain in office.
"First I want to read the report [before deciding whether Olmert should quit," said Ayalon. "Whether Olmert should resign or not also depends on the public reaction."
"If he barely survives the report I will not be able to continue supporting him," continued the minister without portfolio. "But if he proves to be strong enough to advance the peace process with the Palestinians, then we must not throw him into early elections."
"The entire war was the result of poor judgment," said Ayalon, but added, "The future of the peace process is far more important to me than the previous war."
"I'm still saying today the very same things that I said then - you can't go to war in a matter of hours. The prime minister and defense minister should have held a press conference in order to give Hezbollah an ultimatum to return the abducted soldiers within 48 hours. That would have given them time to prepare for all the scenarios," said Ayalon.
When asked if he had spoken to Olmert during the war, he said that a week after it broke out he told the prime minister that "now you must end it. The world is behind us, even Arab states. Even the prime minister of Lebanon, Fouad Saniora, wants to meet you in order to negotiate a cease-fire."
Addressing the final days of the war, in which dozens of Israel Defense Forces soldiers were killed in a final push to the Litani River despite an impending cease-fire, Ayalon said, "The final 60 hours were the result of poor judgment, just like the entire war. That was an unfortunate political mistake, which cost the lives of 33 soldiers."
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