Barak: Rogue officers came close to sabotaging race to lead IDF

Rogue officers nearly succeeded in sabotaging the race to become the next Israel Defense Forces chief, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said  Thursday in his first public comment on a forged document scandal that has rocked the army.

Two weeks ago, Barak named one of the IDF's top generals, Yoav Galant, as successor to Gabi Ashkenazi, whose term as chief of staff expires in February 2011. But the appointment only went ahead after it became clear Galant was not behind a leaked document that outlined a plan to smear his rivals.

	Defense Minister Ehud Barak and IDF Chief Gabi Ashkenazi
	Photo by: Archive / Alon Ron

Police now think the document was fake and are holding a former officer, Boaz Harpaz, on suspicion of forgery.

"I am concerned by this attempt by a number of senior officers, in both the regular forces and the reserves, to obstruct and postpone appointment of the next chief of staff and illegitimately influence the process," Barak said in a statement.

Speculation over the authenticity of the document, which dominated Israeli headlines for weeks, had severely harmed the army's image, Barak said.

"The attempt nearly succeeded," he said. "It caused deep damaged to public trust in the IDF."

The minister's reference to "a number of officers" apparently contradicts the version of police, who said Wednesday that the believed Harpaz acted alone in the forgery - and points to the possibility of a wider conspiracy within the IDF.

Barak said he had appointed a committee under a reserve general, Yithak Brik, that would "take steps" to ensure that the events would not be repeated. He gave no indication of what for the action the committee would take.