World Tribune.com

Israeli defense minister shares blame: Failed to review plans

Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Tuesday, May 1, 2007

JERUSALEM — Defense Minister Amir Peretz directed a war with Hizbullah without examining plans submitted by the General Staff, a government-appointed commission said.

The commission led by retired judge Eliyahu Winograd blamed Peretz as well as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz for the failure to defeat Hizbullah in the 34-day war in mid-2006. The five-member panel said the three demonstrated inexperience, poor judgement and irresponsibility.

"Had any of them acted better, the decisions in the relevant period and the ways they were made, as well as the outcome of the war, would have been significantly better," the 232-page report released on Monday said.

The interim report highlighted Peretz's inexperience as defense minister and said he appeared uninterested in the military's plans. Peretz, appointed defense minister by Olmert in March 2006, did not ask for or examine military operational plans or determine that Israel was ready for war, the commission said.

"His lack of experience and knowledge prevented him from challenging in a competent way both the Israel Defense Forces, over which he was in charge, and the prime minister," the report said. "In all these ways, the defense minister failed in fulfilling his functions. Therefore, his serving as defense minister during the war impaired Israel's ability to respond well to its challenges."

Halutz was also severely criticized for his conduct during the war. The commission said Halutz responded "impulsively" to the Hizbullah abduction of three Israeli soldiers along the border with Lebanon on July 12. A day later, Halutz ordered air strikes against suspected Hizbullah targets in Lebanon.

The panel determined that Halutz, the first air force commander to head Israel's military, failed to properly brief the government on the Hizbullah threat and Israel's inadequate combat readiness. The chief of staff, appointed by then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2005 to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank, did not present military assessments and plans to help Olmert and his ministers formulate a response to the Hizbullah abduction.

"Among other things, the CoS did not alert the political echelon to the serious shortcomings in the preparedness and the fitness of the armed forces for an extensive ground operation, if that became necessary," the report said. "In addition, he did not clarify that the military assessments and analyses of the arena were that a military strike against Hizbullah will with a high probability make such a move necessary."

The report said Halutz exploited the lack of military experience and knowledge by both Olmert and Peretz. The commission said the chief of staff persuaded the two ministers that the military was prepared for war.

Hours after the report was issued, Olmert and Peretz said they would not resign. Halutz quit in February 2007 and has since been studying at Harvard University in the United States.

"The chief of staff failed in his duties as commander in chief of the army and as a critical part of the political-military leadership, and exhibited flaws in professionalism, responsibility and judgment," the report said.


Copyright © 2007 East West Services, Inc.

Print Article Print this Article Email this article Email Article Subscribe to this Feature Headline Alerts Subscribe to this Feature RSS/XML


Google
Search Worldwide Web Search WorldTribune.com