Reservist brigade commander to leave post due to poor war conduct
The force was involved in fighting during the last week of the war when serious command and control problems emerged.
By Amos HarelThe commander of a reservist armor brigade whose conduct during the second Lebanon war was unsatisfactory will leave his command in the upcoming weeks and not in the summer, as originally planned.
GOC Northern Command was careful yesterday not to define the move as "relieving from duty," but decided that the officer will not be promoted or be allowed to take command of an active armor brigade. The brigade participated in fighting in the eastern front, in the region of Marjayoun, as part of a division-sized operation under the command of Brigadier General Erez Zuckerman.
The force was involved in fighting during the last week of the war when serious command and control problems emerged.
One of the force's battalions withdrew from Marjayoun without receiving specific orders from the brigade commander.
A number of tanks that tried to rescue another tank that was stuck in the field due to a technical failure were attacked with missiles, and a soldier was killed. The incident snowballed, and eventually the entire battalion became involved in rescue efforts. This was followed by a retreat to the border rather than a previously planned forward thrust to Marjayoun.
During a debriefing session held at division level, it emerged that the brigade commander had not authorized the battalion's retreat.
Moreover, due to the withdrawal, the brigade commander was left with his tank crew alone in Marjayoun, with just an armored personnel carrier supporting it.
In another incident, a battalion commander in the same brigade announced he could not handle the pressure, and asked to be relieved from command.
"Some of the missions ordered were simply not carried out," outgoing Chief of Staff Dan Halutz said earlier this week at a gathering of senior reservist officers in which lessons of the war were discussed.
"There is an imbalance between sticking with the mission and the value of human life," he continued. "It is unacceptable for a lauded brigade to stop its advance during a mission because it suffered one injured and one dead."
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This article is not clear, most probably because what was actually happening wasn't clear. What is cristal clear however is that the brigade didn't know, or understand, what the hell they were doing there. Fighting without clear purpose is A SURE LOOSER. Way too many soldiers died for the stupid whims of Halutz/Olmert/Peretz. Of course, this troica will never admit that the IDF failure is NOT because of our soldiers, but because of the fundamental failure of themselves.
relieved from his position after a war. in the 1956 campaign an armoured corps officer was removed from duty for being incompetent. that was done during the fighting.
achieve such high office. the problem is that the idf is not paying for the best brains in israel.the armed forces pay peanuts compared to the marketplace. if funds are short then it would be best to order fewer weapons platforms and pay big money to the best that the idf so sorely needs. in this case zuckerman should not have accepted the brigadier in his division.
He was certainly capable when he ethnically cleansed the Jews of Gush Katif but failed miserably against our enemies. One other point- another person involved in the ethnic cleansing of Jews from the land of Israel goes down.
This decision was correct, and the right thing to do. This command did not follow orders, nor execute as told to do in a very dangerous situation. Excuses are not acceptable.