Prime Minister Ehud Olmert suspended top government negotiator Amos Gilad on Sunday after the senior Defense Ministry official publicly criticized him as well as decisions taken by the Cabinet. In a rare move, Olmert also filed a formal complaint against the head of the ministry's Diplomatic-Security division with the Civil Services Commission.
The disciplinary action came after Gilad slammed the government in an interview with the Hebrew-language Ma'ariv newspaper last week just prior to a Security Cabinet meeting, according to a spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office.
Olmert had insisted on linking the reopening of the Gaza crossings to commercial traffic, and any other ceasefire agreement, to the precondition that Hamas terrorists first return kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit. The Security Cabinet voted unanimously on Wednesday to back that decision although Egypt had understood that an agreeement to return Shalit would not be concluded until after it completed mediating a ceasefire with Hamas.
"I don't understand what they are trying to do," Gilad told the newspaper. "Insult the Egyptians? We've already done that. This is insanity, simply insanity. Egypt remains almost our last ally here. For what? We are harming national security."
The Defense Ministry negotiator angrily denied allegations by the Prime Minister's Office that he negotiated with the Egyptians on certain points without government authorization and was maneuvering Olmert into a deal on a ceasefire that he didn't want.
"I was briefed before every trip I took," he asserted, "and I briefed the defense minister and the prime minister when I returned, usually that same night."
Defense Minister Ehud Barak backed his negotiator and issued a statement saying that it was "a shame" that the outgoing prime minister had decided to use the last days of his term to settle accounts with a "dedicated and excellent public servant."
Barak noted that Gilad had contributed to the security of the state for dozens of years, adding that he was known for his "seriousness, responsibility and integrity."