Military Advocate General Brigadier Avihai Mandelblit has ordered an investigation by the Military Police and Information Security Department into suspected leaks to the media during the war in Lebanon.

Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, who had recently asked MAG to carry out investigations, welcomed the decision.

"A number of incidents during the war raised suspicions that elements inside the army were in touch with reporters contrary to military orders, and gave information without authorization and without being qualified to do so, in a way that could have endangered lives," the Israel Defense Force Spokesman's Office said in an announcement.

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Halutz said that "in parallel with the IDF's policy of openness toward the media and the will to preserve transparency vis-a-vis the public, clear norms of ensuring information security are necessary in a military organization."

The chief of staff added that he considers the instances in which officers are in direct contact with reporters and leak information in an unauthorized fashion to be very grave.

Press knew in advance

Aides close to Halutz say that the investigations stem from a number of incidents during the war in which reporters learned of operations by special forces deep inside Lebanon prior, or close, to the time the forces were out of danger.

A few months ago, Halutz embarked on a campaign to curb leaks from the army. As published in Haaretz, he told senior generals that he had asked for their telephone records, and that he knew which ones talked with reporters without being authorized to do so.

A probe ordered by Halutz showed that 460 officers spoke with reporters during the war without permission.

Senior officers suspect that Halutz is not only interested in preventing sensitive defense information from leaking out, but also has employed scare tactics to deter officers who have been critical of the chief of staff.