Nasrallah
NasrallahAFP/File

Former IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz isn't surprised at reports that Hizbullah chief Hassan Nasrallah is ill. “He hasn't seen the sun in seven years, so it would make sense that he would he ill. I'm not sure if those reports are correct, but if he is, let me be the first to wish him further illness,” said Halutz.

Halutz was speaking at an event last Thursday night, attended by young members of the hareidi community. During the event, Halutz, who was Chief of Staff during the Second Lebanon War in 2006, said that Israel could probably eliminate Nasrallah if it wanted to. “I imagine that Israel knows where he is, more or less. During the war, Nasrallah was on the list of those we sought to eliminate, but we were unable to get to him.”

That's changed, Halutz said, adding that Israel's location capabilities are much better now than they were six years ago. “For his sake, I hope he doesn't start another war.”

Halutz also discussed the unrest in Judea and Samaria. “Often there is a match that can cause a major conflagration, but we can't know what it is until it occurs. Having said that, I don't think it's in the Palestinians' interest to begin a murderous uprising against us, because this will kill off the last, slim chance of a negotiated settlement, their only opportunity for a state.”

Turning his attention to the plan to draft hareidi yeshiva students into the IDF, Halutz said that “I see the logic of Yair Lapid's plan,” which would impose an almost universal draft, save for several hundred top students.