Tough calls, big mistakes

Yoel Ben-Nun reviews some of Olmert’s decisions as he bids outgoing prime minister farewell

Yoel Ben-Nun|Published: 04.01.09 , 18:08

Part 1 of op-ed

On the day Ehud Olmert took the office of prime minister, a little more than three years ago, I brought him a gift; two enlarged color photocopies of a section of Psalms, which opened with the following words: “Blessed be the Lord my strength, which teaches my hands to war, and my fingers to fight.” I was certain that Israel’s enemies will be quick to test the new prime minister, who was devoid of military experience, with life and death decisions. I did not know when and how, but I was certain that difficult tests lay ahead. I told Olmert that I pray that God will help him succeed.

This happened a short while after the razing of Gush Katif by Ariel Sharon, with Olmert’s support. I saw that Zionist followers of the Torah are turning their backs on the government. I thought that we must not leave the prime minister of the nation of Israel in his own country without any Torah support and without prayers, while he is burdened with the most difficult decisions and has nobody above him except for God.

During the Lebanon War I met Olmert’s bureau chief, who told me: Who would have thought, back then when we met at the Knesset, that this is what will happen. I responded by saying: But I brought you that specific psalm back then! He stopped for a moment, stunned, and said: Only now did I grasp what you meant. I told him that the prime minister grasped it back then already. Ehud Olmert said that he is used to dealing with a large volume of work, but what makes his job unique is that there is nobody else behind his decisions. He is the first and last decision-maker in the Israeli human chain.

The outgoing prime minister took courageous and difficult decisions, which surprised our bitterest enemies. Thanks to the fact he did not have a military background, Olmert led the nation of Israel into the Second Lebanon War. Had he known what the generals knew, perhaps to this day we would see the IDF continue its deterioration process, coupled with growing cuts to the defense budget.

Evil sheikh remains in hiding

The most difficult mistake made during the Lebanon War was the decision to lift the blockade we imposed on it without getting back our captive soldiers, or at least finding out with certainty what their condition was. Olmert thought Israel would not be able to face the international pressure under such circumstances. However, it was precisely his insistence that could have led to a clear victory in the war.

In any case, the evil sheikh from Lebanon no longer mentions his “cobweb theory,” his people no longer control the border fence, and he remains in hiding. All of this has great accumulated weight.

It may be a few years before we find out the implications of the operation in Gaza and the decision to end it before achieving victory. Perhaps we shall never know. The important decisions taken by the country’s leaders and successfully carried out by the Air Force had strategic implications; let’s hope they will be good ones, God willing. However, at this time we cannot know this with certainty.

However, on the diplomatic front Olmert went too far. He also did not make time for internal dialogue within Israeli society as he pledged to do. His efforts were in vain so far, for the simple reason that they were not enough to bring peace.