Bereaved families join reservists in demand for probe

The campaign mounted by reserve soldiers spread yesterday as bereaved families joined them in demands for a national inquiry into the Lebanon war, and for the resignation of the prime minister and defense minister.

Some 20 reservists accompanied by civilians yesterday marched from the entrance to Jerusalem to the Prime Minister's Office, where they called on the cabinet and chief of staff to resign. In the evening the protesters settled in the Rose Garden.

On Friday a group of reservists and bereaved families, headed by the Muskal family, will hold a protest march. At the end of the march they will present the prime minister with a letter demanding his resignation.

"The leadership failed and it must go. For that we don't need inquiries," said Riva Muskal, mother of Sgt. Rafan-El Muskal, who was killed a month ago in Lebanon.

Other reservists have signed petitions calling for setting up an inquiry committee. On several occasions, reservists raised bitter complaints about the fighting's goings on at meetings with their commanders.

The Commanders Forum of brigades, battalions and reserve pilots yesterday joined the call for a comprehensive investigation, releasing a letter urging the establishment of a new legal-military body headed by a judge and a major general to conduct the inquiries.

The letter, entitled "the pathology of failure," says, "The war has strained to the breaking point the trust between the IDF and the people, between the leaders and bereaved parents, and between the reserve and regular soldiers. Investigating the last war is crucial to the state's security and to prevent further failure in the future. But the leaders are making mistakes and spins to prevent the required inquiry."

The forum blasted the decision to appoint former military commanders to probe the events, since they had made decisions regarding some of these events.

In an apparent response to the protest, the IDF issued a statement saying the soldiers who took part in the fighting would receive financial compensation for some of their expenses, in addition to the usual payment for reserve service.

The reservists say many of them, especially the officers, spent thousands of shekels on equipment, fuel for private vehicles and use of mobile phones to replace malfunctioning military communication devices. Lieutenant Colonel Eran Shani, head of IDF Reserve Personnel Planning Branch, yesterday announced the soldiers would receive a special grant. Soldiers who served more than 26 days would receive NIS 2,000; soldiers who served up to 21 days or more would receive 1,500; soldiers who served up to 21 days would receive NIS 1,000 and less than that - NIS 500. The cost is estimated at NIS 100 million.

Chief reserves officer Brigadier General Danny Van-Buren promised to conduct a "swift, thorough inquiry from the chief of staff down" and that the reservists would take part in it. "We're at the beginning of the process but can pinpoint places where there were malfunctions," he said.