Northern Command chief retires

Northern command chief, Major-General Udi Adam, informed the IDF chief of staff Wednesday morning of his request to be relieved of his duty at the earliest convenience.

Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz complied with the request. In the course of their meeting, held in northern Israel, the two agreed that a replacement for Adam will be appointed as soon as possible.

Major-General Adam has been walking around with a belly full of complaints, following his effective replacement during wartime after it became clear that the aerial offensive failed in fully curbing Hizbullah's attacks.

At that point Halutz sent in his deputy, Major-General Moshe Kaplisnky, who took over the command of the ground onslaught in the north.

Following Kaplinsky's appointment, Adam, who was pushed aside, declared that he plans to consider his future moves after the war. Sources close to the northern command chief estimated then that he would not remain in the role for much longer.

Sources close to Adam said on Wednesday that the major-general has on several occasions expressed to them his difficult feelings regarding Halutz's and the general staff's conduct during the war, and the lack of support given to him. According to an army official, the senior officer decided to delay his resignation until the fighting was over.

Officials close to Halutz were not thrilled to hear about Adam's intentions in the media, after no word on the matter was mentioned in a meeting between the two last week. Adam has also failed to inform Defense Minister Amir Peretz of his decision beforehand.

Senior army officers said Wednesday that the recent incidents call for a thorough self-examination of the IDF. "This cannot happen, senior officers should not make decisions without consulting with the senior staff. It seems that the war in Lebanon continues to expose more and more shortcomings and failures. Things must be put in order, because the public is very displeased," a senior official told Ynet.

The process of Adam's replacement will be carried out within the next few weeks. One of the prominent candidates to replace the northern command chief is Major-General Gadi Eisnkot, head of the Operational Directorate.

Another major-general whose name was mentioned as a possible candidate for the post is Gadi Shamni, the prime minister's military secretary.

National Infrastructure Minister Benyamin Ben-Eliezer saluted Adam for opting to resign in wake of the army's failures in the 34-day war with Hizbullah and called on Halutz to "take responsibility."

"I respect and salute the command chief's decision and I hope that the chief of staff will make his position clear soon and take responsibility," Ben-Eliezer said.