IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Dan Halutz (photo above) enlisted IDF reserve duty major-general, Doron Almog, to head the investigation into the military’s performance in this summer’s war in Lebanon. Almog’s findings were released on Sunday during a nationally televised press event. Halutz himself rejected some of Almog’s findings regarding blame for the failures of the war.
Almog came down hard on the troops who fought in the field, including the battalion which suffered great loses, including the kidnapping of soldiers and heavy injuries, leaving some of its members permanently disabled.
Almog justified his position, blaming Commander of Galilee Forces Brigadier-General Gal Hirsch, who he said did not comply with orders. He cited Hirsch failed to take the proper precautionary measures to prevent the abduction of soldiers from the northern border, his troops did not practice required drills regularly, and there were “wide gaps” between the written orders from the IDF’s General Staff and realities in the field.
Reservists, who were angered by Almog’s findings were quick to reject much of the report, stating it simply is not true. They deny that they were unprepared and “going to a picnic” instead of a military operation. They are calling this another whitewash, stating that the military is once again seeking to place all the blame on field troops and officers while in truth, the responsibility rests on the shoulders of the IDF’s most senior commanders. Some of the reservists have renewed calls for Halutz and Defense Minister Amir Peretz to step down and take responsibility for their failures rather than attempt to place the blame on subordinates.
The reservists also point out that Almog stated much of his factual data was obtained from recordings of field communications. Battalion members stated they did not use field communication due to a lack of reception.
Analysts feel that while Sunday’s resignation of Hirsch only serves to strengthen Peretz’s position, who recently froze Hirsch’s promotion pending the outcome of the post-war investigations, it places additional pressure on Halutz, whose actions/inactions many believe were cause for much of the war’s failures.
Almog stated the kidnappings of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev could and should have been avoided, citing intelligence reports from 2005 from former Chief of Military Intelligence Major-General Farkash, who stated that attempts to abduct soldiers from the border will most likely “escalate” in 2006, in his reference to the war against Hizbullah.
Almog stated current military intelligence reports concur, as did directives from the General Staff, but Hirsch failed to implement the proper measures to prevent such an incident from taking place. This despite the fact that a number of attempts to abduct soldiers from the border were thwarted in the past.
Almog did however blame previous administrations, which he stated sought to avoid an escalation on the northern border at all costs. His statements concurred with those of all military analysts and retired senior IDF commanders, who confirm that since Israel’s unilateral retreat from southern Lebanon in 2000, Hizbullah has been busy building its forces and studying IDF border operations. This was conducted under the watchful eye of a number of prime ministers, who all preferred to ignore the realities rather than address the situation which may have led to an armed conflict.
The report also directed criticism at the IDF’s General Staff, for its failures in addressing intelligence community reports. This is in line with the opinion of reservists who continue a protest vigil, vowing to keep their fight alive until such time Halutz and Peretz accept responsibility for their failures and step down.
Almog came down hard on the troops who fought in the field, including the battalion which suffered great loses, including the kidnapping of soldiers and heavy injuries, leaving some of its members permanently disabled.
Almog justified his position, blaming Commander of Galilee Forces Brigadier-General Gal Hirsch, who he said did not comply with orders. He cited Hirsch failed to take the proper precautionary measures to prevent the abduction of soldiers from the northern border, his troops did not practice required drills regularly, and there were “wide gaps” between the written orders from the IDF’s General Staff and realities in the field.
Reservists, who were angered by Almog’s findings were quick to reject much of the report, stating it simply is not true. They deny that they were unprepared and “going to a picnic” instead of a military operation. They are calling this another whitewash, stating that the military is once again seeking to place all the blame on field troops and officers while in truth, the responsibility rests on the shoulders of the IDF’s most senior commanders. Some of the reservists have renewed calls for Halutz and Defense Minister Amir Peretz to step down and take responsibility for their failures rather than attempt to place the blame on subordinates.
The reservists also point out that Almog stated much of his factual data was obtained from recordings of field communications. Battalion members stated they did not use field communication due to a lack of reception.
Analysts feel that while Sunday’s resignation of Hirsch only serves to strengthen Peretz’s position, who recently froze Hirsch’s promotion pending the outcome of the post-war investigations, it places additional pressure on Halutz, whose actions/inactions many believe were cause for much of the war’s failures.
Almog stated the kidnappings of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev could and should have been avoided, citing intelligence reports from 2005 from former Chief of Military Intelligence Major-General Farkash, who stated that attempts to abduct soldiers from the border will most likely “escalate” in 2006, in his reference to the war against Hizbullah.
Almog stated current military intelligence reports concur, as did directives from the General Staff, but Hirsch failed to implement the proper measures to prevent such an incident from taking place. This despite the fact that a number of attempts to abduct soldiers from the border were thwarted in the past.
Almog did however blame previous administrations, which he stated sought to avoid an escalation on the northern border at all costs. His statements concurred with those of all military analysts and retired senior IDF commanders, who confirm that since Israel’s unilateral retreat from southern Lebanon in 2000, Hizbullah has been busy building its forces and studying IDF border operations. This was conducted under the watchful eye of a number of prime ministers, who all preferred to ignore the realities rather than address the situation which may have led to an armed conflict.
The report also directed criticism at the IDF’s General Staff, for its failures in addressing intelligence community reports. This is in line with the opinion of reservists who continue a protest vigil, vowing to keep their fight alive until such time Halutz and Peretz accept responsibility for their failures and step down.