Ministers from all sides of the spectrum, who speak disrespectfully to each other and to the chief of staff, an army that has not internalized the break in public trust in him. A security establishment that finds it difficult to accept criticism. And a media that, instead of dealing with the main thing, escapes to gossip and care. The last five minutes of Thursday's cabinet meeting seemed to distill everything that so many want to fix in Israel since the outbreak of the war.
IDF Spokesperson: "The debriefing is an internal matter that does not replace any external examination or investigation" // IDF Spokesperson
First of all, the identity of the military debriefers will have a huge impact on their conclusions. The conclusions will have an impact on Israel's national security. It is therefore perfectly legitimate to find out to whom the task was assigned.
Puzzling choices
Especially since the personal choices made by the military seem puzzling. Major General Zeevi Farkas was involved in the protest against the incumbent government and called for refusal. Beyond the problem of visibility, the termination of service by officers in the months before the war undermined the IDF's competence. The commander of the Palmachim base, Brigadier General Omri Dor, made explicit statements on the matter, even three days before the outbreak of the war.
Former Director of Military Intelligence, Maj. Gen. Aharon Zeevi Farkas, Photo: Osnat Krasnensky
"It (the protest) caught us in a challenging place. There was 100% stabilization in Palmachim, but not everyone returned to flying because you have to build up their competence. We will pay a price for it because they are not fully fit," Dor told Walla commentator Dr. Amir Bohbot.
The intelligence apparatus that Zeevi-Farkas is supposed to examine was also refusal. With this background, any sensible person understands that he cannot be the investigating officer. The army has not yet internalized that these questions bother the public, and therefore they must be given attention.
Former IDF Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz, photo: None
The same goes for former Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz. As someone who played a central role in implementing the 2005 withdrawal from Gaza, it is clear that he will not reach a conclusion along the lines of, "The disengagement was a mistake." In other words, his investigation will not be done with clean hands. And if so, what's the point of it?
Easive answers
The IDF was also unaware of this problem, which is heard mainly from the right. So Minister Regev had the right and even the duty to raise these questions, the likes of which were not asked enough until the outbreak of the war, for which she is a member of the cabinet.
IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, Photo: IDF Spokesperson
It is therefore a shame that instead of responding to it matter-of-factly, and saying, 'We will check and fix,' the chief of staff evaded. Until this moment, it is unclear why he did not confirm, but also did not deny, that Mofaz and the others were indeed intended to be the interrogators. This ambiguity increases question marks among both the public and ministers.
But even the defense minister cannot reply to his colleague, "I don't work for you." Galant said so as if to protect the chief of staff and the IDF, but this aggressive response achieves the opposite goal. The public expects respectful discourse. No rants from either side.
Yellow headlines
The one who was supposed to tell the public about all this fairly was the media. But even during a difficult war, most of the energy of reporters and commentators is devoted to trifles and yellow. Instead of reporting on the three hours in which the head of the National Security Council presented the plans for the day after, most of the channels ran headlines about an "attack" on the chief of staff and an "explosion" of the cabinet meeting. This is despite the fact that a more thorough investigation would have revealed that the meeting ended at midnight because it had been predetermined, and that the questions to the chief of staff were reasonable, if not easy.
Minister Miri Regev, Photo: Herzi Shapira
This shallowness of the media, which so many in the public dislike, also contributes significantly to the Simchat Torah offensive. Because if dozens of journalists were to raise questions about IDF policy, and concentrate on the "important" and not just the "interesting," perhaps the army would also be more open to criticism and change its policy before disasters strike.
All this and more therefore need correction, jointly, with mutual acceptance and respect, and with brotherly cooperation – just like that of our soldiers on the battlefield.
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