Major-General Gadi Eisenkot was one of the senior decision makers in the Israel Defense Forces General Staff during the Second Lebanon War.
As the Northern Command chief for the past two years, he took part Tuesday in a ceremony held by bereaved parents on Mount Adir in the Upper Galilee.
"The image voiced then, which compared Israel to a spider's web, is no longer heard," he said, referring to a speech delivered by Hezbollah
Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah
following Israel's
withdrawal from Lebanon.
| Dealing with Pain |
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| Bereaved parents unite 3 years after war / Daniel Edelson |
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Families of soldiers killed in Second Lebanon War visit Mount Adir in Upper Galilee to observe place where their sons lost their lives. 'The pain becomes more human when we're together,' bereaved mother says |
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In his speech, Eisenkot referred to the disagreements, the unity surrounding the cause, and the recovery he sees in the IDF.
"Three years after a war which sparked a controversy over its cause, length, failures and achievements, there is one issue on which we all disagree and are united," said Eisenkot, and that's the appreciation and respect we have from the bottom of our hearts to the fighters' spirit and courage, and the need to commemorate them.
"The cause was just and disrupted an unbearable reality in the north whereby the Hezbollah organization was deployed along the border, initiated terror attacks once every few months and interpreted our desire for a peaceful existence as a weakness which can be taken advantage of."
Saluting fallen soldiers on Mount Adir (Photo: Avihu Shapira)
According to the Northern Command chief, "Ever since the war the enemy sees in front of it an army which can examine its abilities in an incisive and critical manner and fundamentally repair the military readiness, competence and ability to deter the enemy and keep acts of terror away, defending the northern border in a professional and efficient manner. An army which is always prepared to carry out any mission it is tasked with in a professional, determined and efficient way."
The ceremony was also attended by Ehud Goldwasser's father, Shlomo, who became a bereaved father
in the past year.
"It's an exclusive club no one wants to be a member of," he said, "but all of its members feel close. People ask me if I have returned to routine – both my family and the family of Karnit (Ehud Goldwasser's widow) have gone through difficult times.
"We knew that the moment the doubt over Udi's faith will be removed we will all go back to routine and go on with our lives with Udi accompanying the entire time," he added.
"On the first year we met the families on point 105, the kidnapping spot. The difference between us and them at the time was the hope to see the sons return home, which vanished last year when we joined the bereavement club," says Goldwasser, whose son was killed along with Eldad Regev as the two were abducted by Hezbollah.
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