Sharon accuses media of 'sick passion' for critiquing IDF

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon leveled harsh criticism at the media Sunday morning, for attacking the behavior and ethics of Israel Defense Forces soldiers in published reports, even if they are incorrect.

In the weekly cabinet meeting, Sharon said the media has a "sick passion" for publishing reports that are liable to be proven incorrect eventually and warned that such actions could damage Israel's image in the eyes of the world.

Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said such attacks coming from the Israeli media are erroneous, damaging and weaken Israel's international standing.

The criticism comes following a spate of media reports on misconduct by IDF troops, including coverage of the alleged "confirmed killing" of a 13-year-old Palestinian girl by an IDF officer, and a much-publicized incident in which a Palestinian claimed he was told to play his violin by soldiers at a West Bank checkpoint.

Most recently, the human rights group B'Tselem accused a naval commando unit of shooting dead an unarmed Palestinian militant who was lying wounded on the ground. An IDF probe found that the soldiers actions suffered from operational, not moral, flaws.

Netanyahu noted Sunday that "in the case of an incident where a Palestinian is asked to play a violin and in the case where naval commandos shoot dead a wanted man when he is still alive, it turns out that the initial reports did an injustice to the soldiers and placed them in a negative and false light."

Sharon called on IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Moshe Ya'alon to act quickly to refute accusations of a declining moral standard among IDF soldiers.

Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said during the cabinet meeting that he had ordered immediate investigations into all deviations from accepted norms in the IDF. He said the military court system is independent and is able to reach justified legal decisions even if those decisions sometimes contradict the findings of military investigations.

"The decision-making process of IDF commanders of all levels proves that the IDF is a moral and open army that is able to investigate itself," Mofaz said.

Mofaz added that he fully backs the IDF regarding its moral standard.

	Ariel Sharon addressing the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem on Sunday. (AP)