Meet the new boss

JERUSALEM - New IDF Chief Dan Halutz said the withdrawal from Gaza would be done with a mix of sensitivity and determination. Halutz, who assumed his new position Wednesday, is set to command the army’s role in Israel’s Gaza disengagement this summer - the biggest IDF operation since its pullout from Lebanon in 2000 and its largest withdrawal from land Israel captured in the Six Day War. Out with the old Very puzzling dismissal / By Amram Mitzna IDF Chief appears to have been sent home due to personal considerations Full Text The new army chief said the army would seek to preserve the human rights of settlers and soldiers. The former air force chief was sworn in during a military ceremony in Jerusalem, where the army also bid farewell to outgoing chief Moshe "Bugi" Yaalon. "I trust him and am sure his vast experience and quiet and relevant leadership he brings with him will allow him to prepare the IDF to face the challenges that lay before it," Yaalon told Halutz. "Danny, I wish you success." Halutz, 57, faces tough challenges ahead. Besides commanding ground, air and navy forces during Israel’s evacuation of Gaza in August, he will also have to decide future actions regarding an increasingly hostile northern border, as Hizbullah terrorists gain strength in neighboring Lebanon. Palestinian attacks have diminished in recent months since Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared a cease-fire in February aimed at ending four years of bloodshed. Most Palestinian terrorist groups accepted the de facto truce in March. But Yaalon has said that Hamas, which is sworn to Israel's destruction, is taking advantage of the lull in violence to build a “popular army” in the Gaza Strip in a bid to challenge the Palestinian Authority, which has been losing power to Hamas in Gaza since the start of a four-year-old Palestinian uprising in September 2000. Pullout coordination Halutz will also direct Israel’s part in coordinating parts of the disengagement plan with the Palestinians, which could lead to future security cooperation between the two sides. Israel has said such coordination can only commence if Abbas reins in Palestinian terrorists. Officials have been working in recent months to try and work out who will control the Philadelphi Line - a buffer zone between Gaza and Egypt where dozens of tunnels have been found dug underneath that terrorists have used to smuggle weapons into Palestinian territory. The Egyptians have expressed willingness to deploy and assume control of the area to stop the smuggling. Meanwhile, the army continues to fortify the buffer zone and expects an increase in violence by Palestinian terrorists near the border. “We have never done something like this before,” a senior military source said, regarding Israel’s pullout plan. “With all our thorough preparations, surprises may spring up from many directions - settlers, Palestinians, the northern border.” Many settlers have vowed to try and stop the withdrawal - the first from land Palestinians want for a state. The army and police carrying out the evacuation are expecting the worst: some settlers have threatened violence, while others have vowed to commit suicide. Also, with an increase in forces participating in the pullout and a maxed-out reserve army fortifying Israeli positions in the West Bank, senior military sources have warned of increased hostilities along the Lebanese border. Tensions flared in the area last month after Hizbullah terrorists, who Israel says are gaining strength, fired a slew of mortar bombs and rockets at Israel towns. Tradition broken While Halutz's appointment marks the first time an air force chief has assumed command of the IDF, Yaalon breaks a longstanding tradition of his own by not having had his term extended by one year, previously considered automatic for chiefs of staff.. Sharon has never explained his decision to drop Yaalon, but analysts have speculated that the army chief angered him by criticizing air strikes in which many Palestinian civilians were killed, or perhaps comments he made in 2003, when he said Israel was not doing enough to ease hardships on Palestinians. As a result, Halutz faces the challenge of maintaining a delicate balance between preserving the security of Israelis while avoiding unnecessary casualties on the other side.

Meet the new boss

Dan Halutz sworn in as new IDF chief, first commander of air force to lead military. Gaza pullout to be sensitive to residents, but 'determined'