Peretz-appointed panel suspends investigation into conduct of war
Most defense panel MKs back state inquiry; PM, seeking to stave off state probe into war, slams predecessors for ignoring threat posed by Hezbollah.
By Aluf Benn, Haaretz Service, Amos Harel, Gideon Alon and Yuval YoazThe committee appointed by Defense Minister Amir Peretz to investigate the conduct of the war in Lebanon has suspended its work, without giving an official explanation.
It seems, however, that there are two factors contributing to the decision. The first is that there has been no solution to the demand for immunity for senior IDF officers during committee debates, an issue that needs to be settled before the IDF chief of staff permits them to testify.
The second reason is that there is a possibility that a governmental committee will soon be established in place of the Peretz-appointed committee, and it seems that the committee members are waiting for further developments.
The committee, which is headed by former IDF chief of staff Amnon Lipkin Shahak, has faced accusations that it would be ineffective as Lipkin Shahak acted as an advisor to Peretz during the war.
A majority of members of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee support a state inquiry into the failures of the Lebanon war. Those in favor of the probe come from every political party, with the exception of MKs from Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's Kadima.
Committee chairman MK Tzachi Hanegbi, a Kadima lawmaker, prevented the publication of a statement on behalf of the panel calling for a state inquiry, arguing that technically the issue had not been on the agenda for the meeting.
Hanegbi was backed up by the other Kadima representatives on the committee, Otniel Schneller and Shlomo Breznitz.
Among those supporting a state inquiry were Labor lawmakers Danny Yatom, Ami Ayalon, Efraim Sneh and Matan Vilnai, MK Effi Eitam of the National Union-National Religious Party, Yitzhak Aharonishki from Yisrael Beiteinu, Yuval Steinitz of Likud and Ran Cohen from Meretz.
Vilnai expressed enthusiastic support for the inquiry.
"We are in a crisis similar to that after the [1973] Yom Kippur War," he said. "This includes the behavior of the army and intelligence service. The time has come to take the politics out of the military, and it is important that these matters are investigated fully."
The findings of a state inquiry would be made public, with the exception of formally classified military data.
The prime minister is said to be weighing the concept of a governmental panel of inquiry, whose make-up would be determined by the cabinet and which would report directly to the cabinet. Publication of any of the findings would be entirely at the discretion of the cabinet ministers themselves.
PM accuses predecessorsOlmert on Monday pinned some of the blame for Israel's war with Hezbollah on his predecessors, saying they had not responded in time to the danger posed by the Lebanese-based guerrilla group.
"We knew for years that there was a great danger, but for some reason we didn't translate that understanding into action, like we just did," Olmert said during a tour of rocket-hit areas of northern Israel.
"We knew what Iran was doing, what Syria was doing, in arming Hezbollah. We acted as if we didn't know."
The prime minister, under increasing pressure to establish a state commission of inquiry to investigate the government and defense establishment's handling of the war, has instructed Attorney General Menachem Mazuz to present a list of alternatives to such an inquiry.
Protests against the conduct of the war are growing, led by petitions circulated by IDF reservists just back from the fighting in Lebanon.
A group of reservist soldiers and officers also staged a protest march Monday noon, leaving the community of Maoz Zion in the outskirts of Jerusalem towards the Prime Minister's office, Army Radio reported.
A participant in the march told Army Radio the marchers intend to camp out before the Prime Minister's office and call for Olmert, Defense Minister Amir Peretz and IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz to "draw personal conclusions" and resign.
At Olmert's request, Mazuz is to present the government by Thursday with several options for how to investigate the war in Lebanon.
On Monday, one of the petitions, already signed by hundreds of soldiers, received wide exposure in the press.
"The 'cold feet' of the decision-makers were evident everywhere," said the petition sent to Peretz and Halutz, signed by members of the reserve Spearhead Brigade. "To us the indecisiveness expressed deep disrespect for our willingness to join the ranks and fight and made us feel as though we had been spat at, since it contradicts the principles and values of warfare upon which we were trained at the Israel Defense Forces.
"The heavy feeling that in the echelons above us there is nothing but under-preparation, insincerity, lack of foresight and inability to make rational decisions, leads to the question - were we called up for nothing?"
AG opposes state inquiry
In private conversations with Olmert, Mazuz has opposed the idea of establishing a state commission of inquiry - the most powerful and authoritative type of investigatory body. However, he said, this is a personal opinion, not a legal one, and there is no legal barrier to establishing such a commission.
"The question of establishing a state commission of inquiry is at the authority and discretion of the government," he explained.
Mazuz's current assignment is to provide the cabinet with a list of the available options for examining various aspects of the war, along with an explanation of each option's legal implications. He may also decide to recommend a particular course of action.
If the cabinet decides to establish a state commission of inquiry, it has no flexibility: Such a commission's powers and procedures are set by law. For instance, the members of the commission are chosen by the Supreme Court president; it must be headed by a sitting or retired Supreme Court justice; and the commission is authorized to subpoena witnesses and documents.
However, should the cabinet instead establish a less powerful governmental inquiry committee, the prime minister would be the one to determine the committee's composition and numerous other parameters: how long it has to do its work, whether it is authorized to subpoena witnesses, whether it is authorized to collect evidence independently, whether testimony and evidence is confidential, whether it has the power to warn witnesses and senior officials that its findings could damage them, whether it is authorized to recommend or even mandate the resignation of officials whom it finds to have been derelict, whether it can work simultaneously with other investigative committees, whether the evidence it gathers can be used in criminal proceedings, and what subjects it is authorized to investigate.
Senior government officials predicted that Olmert would ultimately opt to establish a governmental committee rather than a more powerful state commission of inquiry. The committee would be headed by a retired judge, they added.
The officials said Olmert is reluctant to establish a state commission of inquiry both for fear that it would issue a harshly critical report of the government's decision-making processes, and because the proceedings of such commissions are often very drawn-out, while Olmert prefers a quicker investigation.
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IDF soldiers embracing after returning from southern Lebanon earlier this month. (AP) |
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Israel lost the conflict for one simple reason. Not enough care was taken to prevent the loss of innocent lebanese lives. It is a war crime and can't be justified. Results include low morale and justifiable propoganda for Hezbollah and awakening for the World
Good old Omer....He looks like a sad clown and every one is yelling at him but please, consider and give back to Cesar what belongs to Cesar. Omer managed to plastic bag a huge amount of Lebanese innocents, particularly children, in a record time.....
The Commission of Inquiry should have a broader range than conceived by Minister Peretz. Israel had over one year's warning: Nasrallah announced several times his intention to kidnap soldiers and periodically sent Katyushas into Israel. In response, Israel came up with a scheme to teach Lebanese morality for sheltering Hizbollah by destroying their infrastructure. What a great way to make friends in Lebanon and the world! Israel failed to train the army and reserves in guerilla warfare - especially on the enemy's home turf. Israel failed to prepare the technology to analyze patterns in launching sites, using GIS and satellite imagery, to prevent launchings. Israel failed to clarify to the Lebanese who was to be attacked and who was to be spared - making all of them the enemy. Israel failed to reach any of its objectives in this conflict - soldiers weren't returned and the Katyushas could start back any time. Instead, Israel wasted material, funds, lives and is no longer feared.
The big lie is what will win out , but in the mean time all those who havent already changed their names to protect the guilty pay attemntion: Look innocent Act Suprised Show concern Deny Deny Deny. This is the universal ass saving method to avoid blame
He is the goat
Roland, please get your fact straight.Israel never stopped assasinating our men in Lebanon through their agents whom the LAF caught early this summer after the assasination of the two palestinian residening on lebanese soil, attempt to assasinate Nasrallah, and last year car bomb of a Hizbollah member. Also, the young shepherd that was killed on the border months ago. What you think their lives are worthless. NO! Each life has a value just like you value your own peoples life. Anyway, when the Israeli agents were caught the United States warned Lebanon against taking Israel to the so called UN Security Council.I am sure you are intelligent enough to understand what that means. Therefore, stop being naive and blame'n what happened on Hizbollah and claim it's a 6-7 wks old problem.The April engagement between Israel & Hizbollah after the first Qana Massacre states that all military actions are limited to mil. actions and targets. So, Hizbollah clearly stated that it'll take revenge 4'em
Dont blame Israel for the killing of civilians. When you hid ammunition and yourselves among population what do you expect.How much money did the fathers get. They ran so fast they left their families behind to be used as human shields. Isreal let the population know get out of area. Yell at the right people Hezbella
you just need a courageous leader,like Rabin,like sadat .olmert tried to show his force,but cauesd the death of hundreds of israeli and innocent civilian lebanese children, nasrallah asked him to make negotiations to exchange prisoners,like what Sharon did and Barak too.you need a strong leader to make peace not war,and to stop using israel to serve US purpos.
Wake up! This war isn't over yet. A piece of paper has been signed, but the objectives set forth in it are far from being performed. Some of the parties have already said they will not comply with its terms. It seems a little premature to investigate an ongoing war
There is no stopping this. Olmert can blame Sharon and Barak, with some degree of truth in the words. The bottom line is he made plenty of bad decisions during the war and needs to take the blame. He makes a buck stop's here speech and now blames his predecessors. It's pretty pathetic. There are differences versus 1973. In 1973, Meir had been in office for over 4 years and didn't have convenient scapegoats like Olmert does. What he doesn't seem to get is that its not the buildup to the war that people are upset about, its the conduct of it. Remember the 1973 commission let Meir and Dayan off? Did it help them? Prepare for a political meltdown folks, its a train wreck just waiting to happen. Shmuel
Bibi has proven that he is the man to lead this nation in such a trying time. He is the only one that seems to get whats going on and has whats necessary to bring Israel back to its position of power. Bibi is the best of this lot, and that is good enough for now. Bibi was the best foreign minister Israel has ever had, and has been a true leader in the opposition. It is time to re-usher him back into the prime minister's office
I don't want another Peretz, Halutz or Olmert or whatever victory over Hezbollah. Instead of talking cow's manure from the left or right, we should be checking the IDF's warehouses, how much and what equipment is left, peace or no peace. Then we should have plans A,B,C,D,E, and Fall Gelb ready for the next round with Hezbollah, Syria, Iran, the Palestians, and whoever else is eager to mix into the fray. Only after we have the plans and the material ready we should act, and really act, not vacillate. Later we can figure out who mismanaged or stole the previous equipment.
if Olmert won't decide to have the most effective inquiary into what went wrong , He dishonors the casulties and the sacrifices of the war. And if this happens, he and the top brass of inteligence, army and politician should be sent home or to serve Hezbolah openly and openly collect their sollaries from Iran. It is your decission Olmert where are you standing about the issue , You are either with us , then investigate, learn, follow the conclusion and change what needs to be changed , or you are with them, Then please go, As for Amir Peretz, now he became liability for the labor party And this is Labor party decission to disband or get to its roots, of BenGurion, Dayan, Golda Mair, and so. Peretz is nothing more but , shame and disgrace.
Another liar of hezbollah!!!
Why do you say Perez and Olmert are corrupt or incompetent leaders. Who is better than them? BB? Oh come on! It's a collapse of Israeli soceity that it cannot think straight and learn from blunders. Whole Israel deamnded from its government to destroy Lebanon, and now blame its own government. Why doesn't Israeli soceity ask for the change of the paradigm shift: From military solutions to negotatiated solutions.
Will an enquiry improve anything? Not likely. Important now is for Tsahal to draw the lessons and improve. The government should faciltate such actions with funding and support from retired professional military. One of the lesson, I believe, is that the 5th column should be dismantled (Arab MK) . It cannot be accepted that in a state of war members of the Knesset do not support Tsahal. Tsahal even unprepared has occupied easily the south of Lebanon. Next time (there will be a next time) Hitzbollah must be destroyed. Let us prepare this.
It was the disengagement that caused this. Money was spent. Time was spent. Training was spent on throwing Jews out of their homes. In the end we got Hamas and everyone thought the Arabs would thank us leave us alone. (And if you believe in G-D this was our punishment for telling him we don't want his Holy Land that he has given to us and for throwing Jews out of their homes and jobs.) An inquiry should be held on the reasons that led up to the disengagement and the results of this disengagement.
In a large scale of a military offensive three basic questions must be answered in evaluation of its wisdom. 1) Are we better off after the war than before? 2) Was the military strategy and execution at least reasonable? 3) Did we have a choice? The answers are clearly No, No, and Yes. This spells a total failure on the part of the civilian leadership and the military top echelon. They both must take responsibility for their inability to protect Israel from its enemies. There is nobody else to blame, the prime minister and the chief of staff are the ultimate decision makers. The buck stops with them period. And they must go.
because the next war is for tomorrow. As long as you do not go to Syria on behalf of the crazies in Washington, you'll be fighting. You should give a thorough thought about this coming war and stand-up and say NO MORE!!!!!!!!
Ehud Olmert must bear responnsibility for the Army's inability to meet the objectives, and to protect the country's citizens. His focus now and in the previous government had been on using the Army to evacuate Jews from their homes, destroying Jewish settlements. The Army's purpose is to protect the Jewish people. It is time for new leadership whose focus is on building the country and protecting its citizens.
Sharon might be brain dead, but so is Olmert, and that didn't stop him from getting the job. In fact, being brain dead didn't stop anyone in Olmert's team. Except for Peretz, who didn't have a brain to begin with.
nasrrallah did not damage lebanon how come that you are not releasing 40 sk of land called shebaa farms and 3 lebanese prisoner do that - return stolen freedom and stolen land and no lebanese will come to you PS the iranian president is crazy as well like olmert and bush
Roland, I am in Canada precisely because I was ethnically cleansed by your people.The Native in Canada understand this and welcomed me as a brother until such time that I can return to my native land Palestine. By the the way this was another war crime that committed against us that no Zioonist leader paid a price for. Yet.
The inquiry would do more good if it would concentrate its efforts not only on what went wrong but on how to win the inevitable next round. The ceasefire is on a short lease. Let's hope the commission will gather its thoughts fast and swift.
What is happening here! Kiryat Shmona is destroyed, and we hit the Lebanese villages and Beirut, and look what happened in Kiryat Shmona and Other kibbuts, is this what the goverment wants?Lets admit that IDF lost the war.
...and I thought some of the choices I have to make in the voting booth were tough! I will hope/pray/cross my fingers for y'all.
The inquiry, into which of the Three Stooges dope slapped the other first as they all grabbed for the lever marked Self-Destruct at the same time should be interesting. Which is why they are determined to stop it at any cost. The fuze is burning on the bomb called Kadima. The "Future" is history, All that is in question is when it explodes.
What type of leader blames a war hero in a coma for his own failures at war? Disgusting as he is, there still is one reason to keep Olmert around for a bit. Hassan Nasrallah. Hassan can't be the victor here. He can't be handed the victory of taking down the Gov't he went to war against, while surviving himself. That does not help Siniora disarm/absorb Hezb. in September. Let things cool down a bit first, then boot out Olmert and everyone else in his gang. Win the peace with Lebanon now. Boot Olmert next. Keep the priorities straight.
PM Olmert has proposed a new panel to investigate the government's conduct of the Lebanese incursions: "that guy," according to Olmert, "who shows up in the mirror everytime I go to shave in the morning. He looks like an excellent leader and a sagacious man of deep wisdom and incontrovertible experience." The panel head will report directly to Prime Minister Olmert, whispering its findings to the Prime Minister as he moves his lips in ratifying accompaniment. "It worked for Rabbi Karo and his maggid," notes Kadima's religious-affairs expert, "we are expecting full support from Shas."
We don't need another inquiry now. We don't have any time for it! We need to review the mistakes we made and immediately prepare for the next round, which is right around the corner. Anti-tank weapons, RPGs and Ketushas need to be addressed right now. I believe we can solve the Anti-Tanks weapons problem right now, if we try. STOP SCREWING AROUND WITH MY KIDS FUTURE!!! ...or we won't be here tomorrow. nice Jewish Boy from Jerusalem Al
Quote: Olmert on Monday pinned some of the blame for Israel's war with Hezbollah on his predecessors. Would Olmert be PM if he were not the number one aide to Ariel Sharon? While Sharon was active was Olmert considered a suitable next PM? If Olmert wants to shift blame to Sharon then Sharon's sycophants should not be in charge.
Our goverment that is run by little childrens is very big treat to us,not Hezbollah!
So numbers that israel don't tell u: -130 merkava tanks destroyed or more -more than 100 hummers destroyed -only at Aita al-Shaab people saw more than 70 israeli soldiers body. -more than 900 isreali soldiers wounded So plame only your gears it ain't it.
"..Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Monday pinned some of the blame for Israel's war with Hezbollah on his predecessors, saying they had not responded in time to the danger posed by the Lebanese guerrilla group." Olmert will kill his mother to protect his own ass. He and his team must go and takes his dwarfs with him.
His constant threatening the IDF with "war crimes persecution" if they took a decisive action against Qassams inhibited the responses of officers.Rather let Israelis to suffer and to die than to touch the sacrosanct pal or Lebanese "civilians",among which the rockets were launched
only you guys will be able to convince the Israeli public to push these dishonest governmental incompetents out of their comfortable offices. ORGANIZE!!!
he was part of those "predecessors." Out of the mouth of someone without character, without competence nor honesty!!!
What utter rubbish. The only person that should be sent to the Hague is Nassrallah and his master, the mad dog from Iran. You must be blind not to see the damage he has done to Lebanon,any way what are doing in the land stolen from the Indians? you should be in court for having and using stolen goods
First the polemic: was the war won, or was it lost? Then: a commission to investigate government handling of the war. Well, it seems as the more in detail sight you try the get, the more the picture gets blurred! First: the kidnapping of the soldiers that seemed to be the reason for invading the Lebanese territory! 2nd: the news that that part of Lebanon was never under government control: i.e. Hezbollah administer the area! 3rd: Israel seems interested to get to the Litani to add km to eventual rocket firing from Hezbollah (with modern armaments I wonder what difference can make 20km of more travel for a missile - but I'm no expert-) 4th: Israel stops the advance in Hezbollah territory, but the kidnapped soldiers are neither found nor released! 5th: the reservists want to know why they were recalled, since they seem to have been reduntant. At the bottom of the story: it seems that the only result has been to get the UN back in the country! Ciao. Mario Fiorito
If Olmert does not immediately resign ---force him out by what ever means ---the continuation of this government is a national tragedy for Israel. You have a construcive and positive alaternative in Bibi!
Reservists should convene their own inquiry chaired by retired officers and invite Olmert and Mazuz to attend. All matters of discovery and testimiony to be open to the press.
FWANTZ, because you are FWENTZCH. Israel needs Israelis to survive, not FWENTZCHMEN.
Olmert`s two military aged sons are yordim and avoided serving in the IDF, his wife is a member of Women in Black, and one daughter hates the IDF and her own country. Is it any surprise that Olmert failed to launch a real ground war? Olmert's military advisors told him fairly early on in the war that the only way to stop the rocket attacks and cause Hezbollah to decisively lose was via a ground war. Olmert was psychologically incapable of doing that. As a result, a rearmed Hezbollah will reappear and wreak havoc again, making a ground war inevitable and increasing Israeli losses. Moreover, in allowing Hezbollah to rearm, Israel is reinforcing the false notion that Israel lost on the battlefield, thus encouraging future acts of terrorism by its multiple enemies. As Olmert cannot effectively lead the country, he should resign!!
Why are you hiding in Quebecistan? Go back home to fight the occupation.
To all Israelis who are now crying foul that their leadership failed in their war against Lebanon.What an irony, while your army was bombing the shit out of Lebanon 80% of Israeli supported your facist government(that is about 100% of all Jews minus the Arabs). You made your bed now you lay in it.Your government lied to you and the entire world, this war was a war of aggression targeting civilians, remember the two soldiers your gov.used as an excuse to start the war, they are still in Lebanese hands and what you got on your hands? are at least 150 dead Israelis and over 1200 dead Lebanese. I agree the Israeli government should go, but only on a one way trip to the Hague, were they will be prosecuted for war crimes they committed in Lebanon.
Hopefully any enquiry will investigate the use of American cluster bombs by the Isreali military. This legacy is now killing Lebanese children; for details see: http://www.guardian.co.uk/syria/story/0,,1854714,00.html Congratulations to Haaretz for providing a forum for exchanging views on such important issues.
will be gone together with everyone involved in it.Olmert , Peretz, Peres,etc --all the Sharons people , that are in coma --all of them will be out in OCT. Nobody of them will resign their positions , since they are used to violate the name of Israel , and its people. As well their disregard to military and its reserves are absolute crap.As if the same people just changed their faces on the way of exterminating Israel as a country--maybe this is what the Kadima was designed for.
I will work to get Netanyahu re-elected, yes. I fully support his doctrine of negotiations with adversaries, guided by the principle of "Reciprocity." Bibi is the last PM to have signed any agreement with an Arab entity. The withdrawals that were executed by his government, in a phased way with halts when Reciprocity was violated by the Palestinians, is the correct model for all future negotiations. Bibi is no fascist. His 2 votes for disengagement are not so self-serving as the columnists have painted them: both votes were conditioned on Israel retaining the Philadelphia Corridor as he made clear in speeches and in print. When that element also was given away, he resigned. His relationship with the "orange" crowd is nervous at best. The Roadmap was crafted in the spirit of Reciprocity. It was Sharon who killed the Roadmap with his addiction to unilateral power after Arafat died. That is a historic tragedy for this nation. And Kadima is multiplying it every day.
As usual the needed probe into the conduct of the war both politicaly and militarily will be bogged down by the corrupt electoral system called " Proportional Representation " where there is no direct accountability to the electorate by the members of the government or members of the Knesset.The sooner the people demand constituency representation the quicker they will get true and efficient govenment
I do agree... Again from France it is very frustrating to stress on an Israeli problem. I can agree/ dis agree/ support/ un support/ be upset ou indifferent... the impact will never be very important. The forum is a good occasion to go deep inside a Haaretz's paper/topic... Clod Salut/shalom/leit traot?/
I cannot understand how anybody can use the argument that Israel attacked Lebanon or was occupying Lebanon when the root cause was the Hezbollah's blatant infringement of the International border and killing 8 Israeli Soldiers and kidnapping 2 more.I suppose it is O.K. for Hezbollah to follow Iran's instructions but not for Israel to protect itself.Enough of " we are the injured party " If Hezbollahis as you say it is " Members are the sons of the villages then they are the victims of their leaders brainwash and ideology
Any lawyers out there? A criminal indictment against these 3 stooges is appropriate - after what they have done they should spend their next 20 birthdays in jail. They have failed their country - resigning is a good first step but is not enough.
The healing must begin within Israel. It must redploy money to the defense budget. Reequip infentry force start a crash course of training our infantry units, and invest in technologies that will protect against the katyusha and tank defese against anti tank rockets. These measures are only tactical in regards to a looming war that is coming. Strategically there must be cleaning house of the political and military leadership that have blundered the current conflict. The confused and inept leadership must be turned out as quick as possible. Everyday that they remain proves to be more and more dangerous.
And with whom would you replace the government elected by the Israelis? With Bibi, Marzel or Feiglin supported by an orange fascist minority?
I am very puzzled by Mazuz. Why should he be opposed to a formal inquiry commission? What has he to hide, I wonder?
Let "the ordinary peolple" (as you says)explain them.The majority of these people fight every day against unemployment in Israel.They fight also for their life conditions, for their wages,or health conditions,etc... Let them explain their anger
Ah CLUCKfool, Are you now on the side of the reservists who protest the government's decison which led to more israelis being killed than perhaps necessary? Or do you just like to see your name in print? You have absolutley no idea what you talk about, and no idea about the nuances of what the reservists mean. wasted space again. You are increasingly showing yourself to be a simple-minded agitator who would sell his mother (no offense intended) to be provocative. I was however, disappointed not to see your cocky new logo and self -important initials as a re-invented man of letters in this missive. Remembering the song take it out of you then? Here's one which shpould lift your spirits: Cluck foo-ool, Plucked foo-ool, I'm just yer regular t#*-ool, Not an ounce of good sense, I'll say anything for a few pence, I don't set the bar high I am basically small fry But i try to make out I'm so coo-ool Keep up the good work. It's....er...finger-lickin good.
Thanks to the reservists who are citizen,workers,kibbutznik,private or state administrations, to talk at the faces of your leaders.Its a lesson of democraty that you are giving. We hope now that politics,army chiefs are understood the message.They should, they should...
We don't need to punish Olmert for what he has already done. We desperately need to remove the entire Kadima constellation from the levers of power before they do MORE damage of the type that comes under the ruberic of "existential threat to the state." Like the three pilgrimage festivals of ancient times, we need to have a huge contigent of citizens march up to Jerusalem. We need an Israeli "1-Million Man March" to cry out for change! The government has already shocked the nation. Now the nation must shock the polticians and let them know once and for all that we do indeed see and hear and know what they are up to.
"the courage is to seek true and says this true" Jean Jaurès - who fight against anti-dreyfusards
olmert and peretz should resign immediatly ! they send thousand of reservist soldier to their death and it's a miracle that we didn't loose more soldiers !! olmert you are guilty to have named peretz as a defense minister and peretz is guilty to have accept a minister that he didn't know anything about !!!
Monday monday Is it the first time in Israel history that such problem occurs and is relased in the media? thank's for clarification. Merci Todaa/clod
The tragedy of the "war", for which read invasion, is that a large number of lives was lost on both sides, considerable damage, extensive pollution, loss of feeling of security, disruption to hundreds of thousands of people, for the sake of two soldiers whose release could have been secured by other means. Israel's over-the-top assault on civilians will doubtless have repercussions for many years to come, as it should. And the outcome? More support for the very groups you sought to weaken; by any standards, the returns on those sqandered lives looks to be extremely poor.
I suppose that the issues faced by reservist are not stemmed only by Liban war They existed certainly before it and are the result of umpreparation ,logistic weakness of land forces ( may be lack of budgetary ressources..)in the picture including thousands of reservists: this point has to be fixed asap by Tsahal.
"Goodbye-ee, goodbye-ee, Wipe the tear, baby dear, from your eye-ee, Tho' it's hard to part I know, I'll be tickled to death to go. Don't cry-ee, dont sigh-ee, there's a silver lining in the sky-ee, Bonsoir, old thing, cheer-i-o, chin, chin, Nap-poo, toodle-oo, Goodbye-ee." British popular song of World War I
And send brilliant and cleaver Alon Pinkas to the UN instead of stagnated and outdated, Gillerman, who is rather good for party meetings than for protecting your interests in NY.
God bless Hezboallah!! They are ready for the 2nd round:) The deployment of the Lebanese army in the south of the country won't prevent Hizbullah from being in the same place. Members of the organization are sons of the villages in the area and no one can can take them out of their homes. If the Lebanese government guarantees to Hezboallah that Israel won't attack South Lebanon anymore, Hezboallah will give up their weapons, but at the moment there is no guarantee of this.
"water that they expected to be 2 feet deep". When ordinary citizens can see that the water is deeper and experts can't, we have a matter of the gravest concern. Let the experts learn the obvious from this: their blinkers are now covering (not just limiting) their vision. How to remove them is the biggest problem they face today.
HOW MANY TIMES DO WE HAVE TO SAY IT? YOU FAILED NOW BE A MAN AND RESIGN!!!!!! WE HAVE NO RESPECT FOR U ANYMORE!!!!!!!!!
Its tiem for a new leadership in Israel..... Perez and Olmert must go home
Only a state probe into the war can counter these amateur opportunists - Olmert and Peretz
Israeli politicians have a no win situation. If they respond to an attack in a measured way, they will be instantly castigated as being weak and inviting more attacks. If they overreact, it is not a problem in some cases, such as slaughtering mostly unarmed Palestinians. Overreacting against Hizbollah is a whole different thing. The Israeli leadership stepped into the water that they expected to be 2 feet deep, and were instantly over their head and fighting for survival. This would have happened under any Israeli leadership so learn from it. Scapegoating Olmert will not fix the problem.
It is no surprise that Olmert will do anything to avoid a state inquiry commission. Doing so requires a degree of personal and professional integrity which is probably the one common characteristic that all of Israel's current leadership, and in particular Olmert, lack so sorely. After such a military and home-front fiasco, any decent leader would have resigned and disappeared into oblivion. Not our prime-minister; not our defense minister; not our chief of staff; not any of the army's top brass; not any other member of this pathetic, impotent, useless and corrupt government. It must also be said that Israel?s voting citizens have a tendency to forget things and to avoid learning lessons from past mistakes. Time for all Israelis to wake-up, put all the possible pressure to create a State inquiry commission, to demand immediate resignation of this government and the military top brass beginning with Halutz and to go to the polls and finally choose a real leadership for this country.
Certainly the results of such commission should come out as quickly as possible, in the order of 3 months or so. To get quick results one needs a bigger commission, say, a pyramid of judges - one top judge, 3 judges under him (for the 3 main individuals to be investigated (Olmert, Peretz, Halutz) who can work in parallel, etc., with constant communication between them.
I hope the commission also investigate the orders to drop thousands of bomb on civilian's building and calling it Hezbullah targets, also the commission should examine the orders after agreeing on UN resolution by the government, why more then 41 israeli had to die more then 100 injured after you have already made the decession to withdraw? why. Did you think of their families, I believe that you should be tried for killing everyone of them and for the families of these young kids that had to die for Mr. Olmert and Mr Peretz seats, they should sue them in civilian courts for damage and for sending their children to die after they have agreed to stop.
AKA The politician?s bible. 1. Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil 2. Become incredulous and indignant 3. Create rumormongers 4. Use a straw man 5. Sidetrack opponents with name calling, ridicule 6. Hit and Run 7. Question motives 8. Invoke authority 9. Play Dumb 10. Associate opponent charges with old news 11. Establish and rely upon fall-back positions 12. Enigmas have no solution 13. Alice in Wonderland Logic 14. Demand complete solutions 15. Fit the facts to alternate conclusions 16. Vanish evidence and witnesses 17. Change the subject 18. Emotionalize, Antagonize, and Goad 19. Ignore facts, demand impossible proofs 20. Falsify evidence 21. Call a Grand Jury, Special Prosecutor 22. Manufacture a new truth 23. Create bigger distractions 24. Silence critics 25. Vanish
Olmert's two military aged sons are yordim, his wife is a member of Women in Black, and one daughter hates the IDF and her own country. Why on earth does Olmert want to be PM - it is shameful and shameless for him to order the sons of other families to fight when his own family exemplifies no commitment whatsoever. Next time, please Israel be smarter when you elect a government!
NA NA NA NAAAH...........