Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi
Photo: Niv Calderon
'IDF's recovery will take time'
Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi presents Security Cabinet with lessons of Second Lebanon War; ministers praise army for its honesty
The military's recovery process still has a long way to go, IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi told the Security Cabinet in a meeting where the lessons of the second Lebanon war were presented on Wednesday.
Top Brass
Hanan Greenberg
New army chief addresses IDF's top ranks with central message: Stability is pivotal. In hour-long speech, Ashkenazi discusses military preparedness, training and values
Ministers were amazed by the sincerity of the army's commanders, as Ashkenazi, Deputy Chief of Staff Moshe Kaplinski and Brigadier General Danny Biton, commander of the central ground forces’ training facility, presented a summary of the General Staff's inquiry committees' 30 main reports.
The reports touched on a variety of subjects such as the relationship between command and the division, and the link between the General Staff and command.
Ministers of the Security Cabinet praised the military for its courage in investigating the events and admitting to mistakes without hesitation.
"The officers admitted where the failures were and which lessons were drawn. The military certainly investigated the incidents, not just to round off the edges but to tell it as it is," said one of the ministers.
Ashkenazi made it clear that implementing the war lessons would take more than a few months.
"We are talking about battalions and divisions that did not train enough and it will take time to get them back to what they once were. It is important to know that this will take a lot of work and a plan that will take years and will not be completed tomorrow morning," said Ashkenazi.
"The investigations were admirable," said another cabinet member, "a large part of the work was done by the previous chief of staff Dan Halutz, who ran a set of investigations that bordered on self-flagellation. It was simply amazing to see the openness with which the investigations were carried out."
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said that it was important that the cabinet hear these things to see the full picture, "This will project on the IDF's long term work plan."
"We need to make sure it is carried out and back up the IDF," he added.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz said that he instructed the military to put an emphasis on the training plan and equipping and refilling the IDF's stockpiles. "It's important to back up the army, and that is what we are doing here," he said.
