Why the hell is Ehud Barak the Minister of Defense? I mean, it's pretty obvious that Barak has made a career of blunders, retreats, strategic errors. He's used his political position to amass a fortune, among other rather repulsive characteristics. There is no excuse for Netanyahu to keep this bungler even at the risk of Labour leaving the coalition. Rather than worry about his coalition, Netanyahu should forget about being a politician & start being a leader.

The man is supposed to be defense minister he has seen the Lebanon disaster in 2006 and one of the reasons Hizbollah were so strong is because in his proud decision to pull out of Lebanon unilaterally he did nothing about them first. As defense minister under Olmert during Cast Lead the soldiers were on the verge of completing their campaign possibly even getting Gilad back. Barak & Livni pushed Olmert to pull out unilaterally before the job was done because Bibi was ahead in the election polls. Result Hamas are rebuilding and still firing rockets. Now this idiot wants more unilateral surrender. If Barak and the rest of todays generation of politicians were in charge before 1948 they would have said ok the creation of a jewish state will upset the arabs so we will stand proud and say neither the British or arabs forced us to do it we took the initiative and send Holocaust survivors back to Europe and the world will congratulate us for our decision.

The once mighty and feared lion has been downsized to a toothless kitty without claws. The concept of VICTORY over one's enemy no longer enter's into the thought process of the deballed Israeli heirarchy. The agenda has now moved to ending the limited approach of blocakde from the Israeli psyche. Soon Israel will be fully compliant with her destroyer friend's plan. This growing threat in Gaza can be traced back to Israel's failure to defeat Hamas under US pressure to end the short war before victory was achieved.Barak was only too happy to comply. Victory is no longer in Israel's vocabulary.That's why you are now reduced to blockade lite and legitimizing Hamas. Only the US can have long never ending wars. Israel is on a very a short leash and it's wars are only allowed to last a but few days or weeks at most before the choke collar is tightened on the neck. If you haven't noticed, under long standing US policy Israel is forbidden to defeat another Arab army ever again as we saw with Hizbollah in 2006 and Hamas in 2009. Supplying Lebanon's Military factors into this. Before Pharoah tied the leash Israel would defeat her enemies. The slaves continue to make religious pilgrimages to Egypt, too weak and subservient to end the Road Map farce. There is not one Israeli politician who has the moral fortitude to shut off power to Gaza or anything strong to break Hamas because they are by their nature weak and subservient . Those individuals with moral and spiritual fortitude are kept from positions of power in Israel . Only corrupt lackys beholden to the old boys network rise to the top in Israeli politics.The US only permits weak and subservient Israeli's to become Prime Minister. Any who show the slightest independence from Washington are quickly brought to heel. This is why Netanyahu keeps trying to get Livni into his Vichy government,just following orders. He's always yeilding because he understands their power to destroy him. He's owned. So it's a sure bet that quisling Netanyahu will bring his knee pads to Washington and Israel will suffer more to please Pharoah.

So it took 20 years for hizballah to be created and to arm itself with 7000 rockets. Then, Barak took tsahal away from lebanon. Only 6 years later, hizballah had more than 15'000 rockets. What a performance. Furthermore, nowadays, only 4 years after the 2006 war, it has something like 50'000 rockets, some being able to hit tel-aviv and maybe even jerusalem. It's so easy when you look only one way.

Right on. It is the Barak who offered 98% of all territories to Arafat. What else will he give?

Sorry Ehud, Hezbollah was created and became stronger because of internal conflicts amongst the arabs of Lebanon, syrian influence and the massive support of Iran. Israeli weakness is also throwing fuel on the Hezbollah Iranian fire. Was the precipitous pullout from Lebanon and betrayal of our Lebanese Christian allies positive or negative for israel. The story is still being written.

question is barak a genius or imbecile? Probably both. Ask his first wife, nava.

At Camp David without consulting the Knesset, his advisors he brought along or anybody he amazed both Clinton and Arafat when he announced that he would divide Jerusalem. Now thanks to Barak the divide Jerusalem genie has been let out the bottle and we are never going to get it back. Until we need a political system where politicians are directly elcted and the party with the most seats rules alone no more coalition that gives us the wrong men for the job and makes politics stale because it never changes much because its the same parties in the coalition year in year out. We also need a constitution to control our politicians so we don't get any Baraks deciding that he has the right to divide Jerusalem without consulting anybody.

Surely it is beyond dispute that Hizbollah was better equipped and stronger in 2006 than 2000. Don't remember many rockets hitting Haifa and beyond before the pullout.

Gaza would be a good place!

for peace.” Israel uprooted 10,000 Jews from settlements in the Gaza Strip. And every time Israel gives up land for peace, its enemies that are determined to kill them just get closer... So instead of making peace, Hamas seized control over Gaza and engaged in acts of warfare against Israel, nearly 10,000 anti-personnel rockets, directed at Israeli civilians "to resist the occupation." Israel responded to the rockets by declaring a naval blockade, to assure that no rockets or other material that could be used for making war and killing Jews were permitted into Gaza. However, over 90 rockets and mortar shells have been fired at Israeli territory since the beginning of 2010, and approximately 330 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel since the end of Operation Cast Lead. But Fatah is no less firm than Hamas in seeking the goal of Israel’s destruction. Kifah Radaydeh, the deputy head of the Jerusalem chapter of Fatah, says openly that the PA will resume violence and terror against Israel when Fatah is "capable," and "according to what seems right." (Fatah Official: “Our Goal is Not Peace, but Rather Palestine,” INN, 07/13/09). Hamas Urges Rocket Attacks from Judea and Samaria: Hamas spokesman Mahmoud al Zahar called on the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria to allow terrorists to launch rockets at all of Israel. Short-range Kassam rocket fired from Arab villages in western Samaria could easily reach and explode in Netanya and metropolitan Tel Aviv (06/20/10, INN). The White House have said that the terrorist groups Hamas and Hizbollah must renounce violence and recognize Israel before they can expect even low-level US engagement. However, the PA has reached even "high level engagement" by fooling the US. A Stranger on Earth: http://www.torahblogg.net/

Whether Hezbolla become weaker or stronger maybe a matter of question, but there is no question that Israel has become weaker and there isn't anyone out without any coherant plan. Withdrawals and concessions don't bring you closer to peace and in fact has an opposite effect.

Landau is absolutely correct about Barak. He should only change the semantics a little and liken Barak to a "battered spouse" because women aren't the only victims of domestic violence. However, the buck stops with Bibi. Bibi is fully aware that Barak is a total disaster for Israel. Yet Bibi begged Barak to join his government. Bibi is to blame for Barak being in the government in the first place. The problem begins right at the top - with Bibi. Likud should replace Bibi and quick.

#14 You have it bang on. It is incredible that some Jews still see further Israeli concessions and retreats as the key to peace. Hundreds of times Israel has made concessions and retreats. The result, in EVERY single instance, has been disastrous for Israel. Virtually ALL Israel's problems stem from concessions and retreats. Israel must end this lunatic policy.

The reasons not to legitimize Hamas are obvious, but consider this: If the West Bank were annexed tomorrow, the Jewish majority (river2sea) would be approximately 65/35 (some would argue it is higher) and studies show that the demographic trends favor the Jews. When the world condemns Israel for annexing Jewish land, more Jews will feel threatened in the diaspora and move to Israel (a stronger, more resolute, Greater Israel), and the demographic threat will be further neutralized. Legitimizing Hamas means the separation of Gaza (and 1.5 million non-combatant enemies) from the rest of Israel. Let them rule Gaza until the Gazans become jealous of their Arab brothers who have Israeli citizenship and a normal life. Eventually the Gaza problem will work itself out. In the meantime, Israel can end the disastrous "destroy Israel piece by piece process" and integrate the West Bank.

But what are YOU doing with your friends in this Government to fight Barak's policy ?

Finally Usi Landau Brings a very bitter sore to most Israelis into the open Ha spares his words against the COWARDLY GROVELING WIMP BARAK the minister of evictions.Politics is the filthiest game known to man Here for the world to see the sickness of deals made by Bibi to keep a seat in the knesset. Bibi does not give a damn for the nation. He only wants photo records and showoff for pulling down his pants for the muslim american president and the low down yellow streeked coward barak

Bibi has no choice but to keep Barak on. The stupid coalition system means that if Bibi is going to get a coalition together he needs Labor. The alternative is Livni and her ego insisting that the premiership be rotating ( Bib PM for a couple of years then she PM a couple of years ) she is also insisting Bibi get rid of Yisrael Beitanu & Shas ( the other right wing parties ) If Bibi doesnt meet at least some of those conditions like kicking out YB & Shas then its no deals as far as she is concerned. Barak is the lesser of the 2 evils. The idea which seems to have gone wrong was stick him in defense and a limited role in running the country and he will be happy. The reality seems to be Barak has taken on all the senior positions. The foreign minister ( Liberman ) is never sent to do the jobs a foreign minister is supposed to he just sits around doing nothing while Barak makes all the diplomatic vists and meets diplomats because the west like him better. He is even acting more like the PM than Bibi does at times. Whist Bibi seemed to imposed an unofficial PM but he still seems to believe its better to have him than Livni. We need to get rid of Bibi, Barak and Livni they are all more trouble than they are worth.

pull out of lebanon once and for all then if hizbollah utters one word against israel POUND IT! While ever you are in lebanon you give them an excuse for existance..once Israel is out they have NO argument and Israel has free reign if they fire one rocket....but then it will become a lebanon vs israel war and not just hizbollah. There are many great people in lebanon who hate hezbollah more than israel does but they r powerless. Makes perfect sense to me.